It has emerged that the Korean government officially requested talks with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to conclude a separate arrangement to discuss the military use of nuclear material needed to introduce nuclear-powered submarines.
On the 7th (local time), Voice of America (VOA) said IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said at a news conference at the IAEA headquarters in Vienna, Austria, that "Korea has officially informed the Secretariat of its intention to begin consultations with the IAEA on a separate arrangement under Article 14 of the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement (CSA)."
Grossi said, "Korea has already submitted relevant declaration materials to the IAEA and also reaffirmed its commitment to fulfill its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement, and the Additional Protocol," and added, "We expect consultations to continue based on transparency going forward."
The NPT, which Korea has joined, stipulates that non-nuclear-weapon states may not divert nuclear material such as uranium to develop nuclear weapons. To verify this, non-nuclear-weapon states must conclude a Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement with the IAEA and accept measures such as inspections.
However, Article 14 of the agreement allows the use of nuclear material for military purposes other than nuclear weapons if separately agreed with the IAEA. A representative example is enriched uranium used as fuel for nuclear-powered submarines.
Grossi also said in June that talks on an Article 14 arrangement with Korea were in the early stages. He added that he discussed the matter with Minister Cho Hyun of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs when visiting Korea in April.
The government in May set a goal of launching the first nuclear-powered submarine by the mid-2030s and deploying it to the Navy for operational service in the late 2030s.
Grossi also offered an assessment that the new uranium enrichment facility in Yongbyon, North Korea, may already be operating or be on the verge of operation.
Regarding whether the facility inspected by Kim Jong-un, chairman of the State Affairs Commission of North Korea, in June is operating, he said, "Recent reports on North Korea contain several elements that lead us to assess that the facility may be operating or very close to operating."
He continued, "The new facility is similar in scale and infrastructure to the Kangson uranium enrichment facility," and explained, "Photos taken in June this year suggest that centrifuges of the same type confirmed at previously disclosed North Korean enrichment facilities have been installed."
The 5 MW (megawatt) reactor at Yongbyon was observed to continue operating during the seventh nuclear fuel irradiation cycle. The Yongbyon light-water reactor, which had been idle for a while, was also assessed to have been restarted since late April.