Reuters: North Korea Seeks to Protect Its Nuclear Missiles

A UN agency has reported that North Korea has maintained its nuclear and ballistic missile programs intact and is striving to protect these capabilities against any potential attack. Reuters states that on Monday, February 4, a version of this report by UN sanctions monitors on North Korea was seen by the 15 members of the UN Security Council. This report comes ahead of the second meeting between the leaders of the United States and North Korea later this month. In their first meeting last spring in Singapore, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un promised to take steps towards denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula. According to the report, North Korea uses civilian facilities, including airports, to assemble and test ballistic missiles, aiming to preserve these capabilities from any crippling attacks on known nuclear missile production sites. The report also specifies that evidence shows North Korea is actively dispersing assembly locations, stockpiling weapons, and conducting tests. Reuters notes that the 317-page report was presented to Security Council members on Friday, and the North Korean delegation at the UN has not commented on the report. The UN Security Council has unanimously imposed sanctions on North Korea since 2006, demanding a halt to Pyongyang's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and has implemented extensive sanctions, including on crude oil and petroleum products. North Korea has criticized the United States for taking minimal steps in response to Pyongyang's actions to halt its nuclear and missile programs. North Korea has repeatedly called on the U.S. to lift its sanctions and officially declare an end to the war, providing security guarantees. Meanwhile, the UN monitors' report indicates that sanctions against North Korea have had little effect. The report states that North Korea continues to significantly increase illegal transfers of oil and coal through maritime shipments, defying UN sanctions. Dan Coats, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence, stated last Tuesday in the Senate that our current assessment is that North Korea seeks to maintain its weapons of mass destruction and is unlikely to abandon its nuclear weapons and capabilities to produce such weapons, as nuclear weapons are deemed vital for the regime's survival by its leaders.