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Tensions on the Korean Peninsula

North Korea may put Nyongbyon nuclear reactor fully on line next summer, Seoul says

South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik did not rule out that the reactor could be used for military purposes

SEOUL, December 29. /TASS/. North Korea could fully commission its experimental light-water nuclear reactor (LWR) in Nyongbyon by next summer, South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik said.

"[The reactor] is currently operating in test mode to improve equipment. Full-time operation is expected to begin by next summer," the Yonhap news agency quoted the minister as saying. The top defense official explained that the South Korean side detected signs of water used for cooling being drained from the reactor in the summer of 2023, and it would take about a year for full operation to begin.

At the same time, the minister pointed out that it was unlikely that North Korea would use the reactor to produce plutonium for nuclear weapons. "So far, no country has produced nuclear weapons by producing plutonium through light-water reactors," Shin said. He believes that Pyongyang's claims that the reactor would be used to generate electricity for Nyongbyon County are plausible.

However, the top South Korean defense official did not rule out that the reactor could be used for military purposes. According to him, the reactor could be useful in experiments to create nuclear propulsion for nuclear submarines and to produce tritium needed for a hydrogen bomb. Shin also said that he and his subordinates would monitor the situation in case North Korea was able to find a way to produce weapons-grade plutonium using the LWR.

On December 22, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said that the agency's observations indicated that North Korea may have started up a light-water reactor that is theoretically capable of producing plutonium. The IAEA detected signs of a water release in mid-October, the Yonhap news agency reported.

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Situation on the Korean Peninsula

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