N.Korea Said to Halt Work at Nuclear Facility

[gp]

N.Korea Said to Halt Work at Nuclear Facility
Thu September 11, 2003 01:32 PM ET

By Carol Giacomo, Diplomatic Correspondent
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - North Korea appears to have halted work at its Yongbyon nuclear complex, center of its efforts to produce plutonium for atomic weapons, U.S. officials said on Thursday.

But they stressed that the reason is not known. They told Reuters possibilities include: Pyongyang has done this as a gesture to encourage negotiations with Washington; it has run into technical difficulties, or, more ominously, it has finished reprocessing fuel needed for a half dozen or more nuclear bombs.

"There's not much going on," one U.S. official said when asked about current activity at Yongbyon.

Another said: "I sense there may be a pause in the action but would be nervous about concluding that for certain."

Assistant Secretary of State James Kelly, asked about media reports about Yongbyon inactivity at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Thursday, said he would only answer questions in a closed session. The subject was dropped.

If operations have been deliberately halted to facilitate six-party negotiations, the effect may be offset by an ominous new development.

U.S. officials told Reuters on Wednesday the North had used Russian technology to produce a new intermediate range ballistic missile that may be the most accurate and capable in Pyongyang's inventory.

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[section321]

1. I'll pick option three.

They've finished reprocessing their plutonium. They are actively making nuclear bombs and will soon light one off to prove to the world that they have them. At that point, no one will want to tangle with them because they are nuclear.

So, while we invaded Iraq which didn't have nukes or an active program and said so, we ignored the North Koreans who said they were actively working on nukes.

This is baffling.....

[teryang]

2. We haven't ignored them

We are trying to "starve them out." According to Wolfowitz they are about to collapse.

[AndyTiedye]

3. Not Baffling At All

1. * needs something really, really bad to happen, or he's toast. A :nuke: would fit the bill.
2. He can't do another conventional war now, but all our nukes are just sitting there. * would love to use them, dontyaknow.
3. NK's missiles can only hit the West Coast. * declared war on California long before he made war on anybody else.