A brightly lit warehouse with cylindrical machines in long rows, Kim Jong-Un in conversation with what appears to be personnel and military personnel. The images are said to show progress at a uranium enrichment facility somewhere in North Korea.
According to Niklas Swanström, the new images are the first to clearly show this type of facility in the country.
– You want to send the signal that you are a full-fledged nuclear power. Even if we don’t recognize North Korea as a nuclear power, I think we have to start treating the country as one, he says about how the outside world should relate to North Korea’s rearmament.
“Disarmament not an option”
Kim Jong-Un has previously said that he wants to “exponentially” increase the number of nuclear weapons. Niklas Swanström says that North Korea currently has an estimated 50 nuclear weapons, but in the long term wants to increase the number to around 300, the same number as France has.
– Disarmament is no longer an option for North Korea, says Swanström, who points out that it is no coincidence that the images are being released right now.
– It is an excellent opportunity because the outside world is focused on the Middle East and Ukraine and therefore will not be able to act very hard to mark.
Strengthens ties with Russia
At the same time that North Korea wants to send signals about the country’s capabilities both to its own population and the outside world with the images, Kim Jong-Un is also trying to strengthen ties to Russia. The countries already have a partnership agreement and promise to protect each other in the event of an attack.
This week, Kim Jong-Un had Sergei Shoigu, head of Russia’s Security Council, on a visit to the capital, Pyongyang. According to North Korea, they have both talked about “steadily deepening the strategic dialogue” between the countries.