North Korea Remains Active At Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site - IAEA Chief

North Korea Remains Active at Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site - IAEA Chief

North Korea remains active at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said on Monday

VIENNA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th June, 2023) North Korea remains active at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said on Monday.

"The Nuclear Test Site at Punggye-ri remains prepared to support a nuclear test, and we continue to see indications of activity near Adit 3 and in the support area. The reopening of the nuclear test site is deeply troubling," Grossi said in the opening remarks at the meeting of the IAEA's board of Governors.

Grossi expressed regret over the continuation of North Korea's nuclear program, which is "a clear violation of relevant UN Security Council resolutions."

The IAEA head also noted an increase in construction work at North Korea's main nuclear site at Yongbyon.

"Since March 2023, the Agency has seen indications of ongoing operation of nuclear facilities, and a significant increase in construction work, at the Yongbyon site," Grossi concluded.

On May 30, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol called for boosting cooperation to block North Korea from financing its nuclear and missile programs in circumvention of UN Security Council sanctions.

On June 2, Russian Deputy Envoy to the United Nations Anna Evstigneeva said that the root cause of spiraling tensions in the zone of the Korean Peninsula was the United States and its allies' desire to increase pressure on North Korea.