North Korea Admits Procuring Uranium Enrichment Equipment
by Richardson ~ September 17th, 2007. Filed under: Diplomacy, Engagement, Nuclear Proliferation, Six-Party Talks.For the first time since 2002, North Korea has admitted to purchasing equipment for a program to produce highly enriched uranium (HEU), though only to aluminum tubes. (Probably this would be a good time for David Albright to chime in and tell me how ignorant I am about centrifuges, claim he was misquoted in various news reports, and then refuse to respond to hard direct questions concerning his claims.)
An added irony is that this report came out the day someone gave me Jack Pritchard’s recent book, “Failed Diplomacy: The Tragic Story of How North Korea Got the Bomb,” which essentially blames the Bush “administration’s lack of Korea experience” for failed relations with North Korea, rather than North Korean actions. I’ll have to see what the book says about the October 2002 admission and post on that as well.
From the Kyodo report:
North Korea told the United States earlier this month that it procured materials related to centrifuges used for uranium enrichment from a third country, diplomatic sources said Monday.
North Korea’s revelation regarding aluminum pipes marks the first time that Pyongyang has admitted to allegations about a secret uranium enrichment program which sparked the current North Korean nuclear standoff.
But North Korea did not go as far as to say that it had begun uranium enrichment…
During the Geneva talks, North Korea’s chief delegate to the six-party talks, Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan, admitted to his U.S. counterpart Christopher Hill, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, that North Korea had procured aluminum pipes from a third country, the sources said. (emphasis added)
A minor correction to the article, this is the second time North Korea has made the admission, but the first time publicly (as Joshua points out, this is the second time they’ve admitted to this privately, the first time they are not denying it publicly):
During a meeting in P’yŏngyang on October 4, 2002, North Korean Deputy Foreign Minster Kang Seok-Ju admitted to U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James Kelly that North Korea has secretly continued a nuclear-weapons development program…
Afterward, North Korea denied any admission and accused the U.S. of fabricating the incident. North Korea has continued to deny any part of a HEU program until the above admission, which caused doubt among some in the international community and was a main theme of the press - despite Pakistan confirming HEU cooperation, the U.S. translator’s commentary on the issue, and even South Korean intelligence stating they believe North Korea had such a program.
Coming on the heels of the report by Haggard and Noland on how U.S. sanctions hurt North Korea after all, this is a rare second moment of vindication in a single week for those like myself.
What will the apologists say now? Let the backpedaling begin.
Clearly North Korea – hurting economically from U.S. led sanctions – is attempting cut some sort of deal to relieve the pressure, and a full declaration of all U.S. programs is a requirement of that. But since North Korea can’t engage in the way some are expecting (exposing the Kim cult of personality to reality would undermined regime legitimacy), I predict it’ll be 2002 all over again (disingenuous engagement geared towards a few rewards).
I don’t know what evidence the U.S. has and if the North’s limited admission will be accepted as a full HEU-related declaration, though I suspect some at State are willing to take less than they should to boost the diplomatic scorecard.
September 17th, 2007 at 12:31 pm
Just as long as Roh scores his political points, to hell what common sense says otherwise. The entire diplomacy efforts are joke, and Kim Jong Il knows it too. We all know he will not give up all his secrets, and there will be no way to know what he has.
Kim needs to go. Strangle him financially.
Yes, that is a pipe dream, but hey…
September 17th, 2007 at 12:39 pm
[...] on the current Syria/North Korea connection (See ROK Drop too), and is well worth the read. Also, DPRK Studies has an interesting admission from the DPRK about HEU and a stinging report on the progress. Another [...]
September 17th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
Minor point, but aren’t we at two private admissions now?
More irony, if any is needed, is that Jack Pritchard himself was present the first time the North Koreans admitted having a uranium program in 2002. Pritchard tends to lay low whenever the Selig Harrisons of the world are debating the admission with the likes of John Bolton. It’s just as plausible to think that five years from now, North Korea will be back to denying it and Chris Hill will be the one laying low durin the next great debate about what North Korea admitted.
Which points to why we shouldn’t place all that much value on North Korea’s admissions or its denials. The extrinsic evidence matters much more. I’d be more interested in just how much of that the North Koreans are prepared to show. Like the actual tubes, for example.
Still, great post. I think we’ve now both called Albright out within the span of 24 hours.
September 17th, 2007 at 1:10 pm
Jack,
I agree that the only way we’ll really know what he has is to find out when the regime is gone. Unfortunately chances of that happening on an accelerated schedule are lessening as the Bush administration plays along with Pyongyang’s pseudo-engagement. We’ll see if the Syria-nuclear issue has any teeth to it, and if the Norks can make the declaration hurdles.
Joshua,
You’re right - correction noted above!
Something may pop-up, but it seems that North Korea isn’t (yet) denying this admission, meaning an implicit public confirmation of this admission. We’ll see if that lasts.
I may sound like a hanging judge when I say I don’t put much weight on North Korean denials but do some on confessions; it they deny something, it’s up in the air if they actually done it or not, but (usually) if they admit to it the only question is how much more they need to tell for the full confession.
I’m pretty sure the weasels will stay in their holes for now, but if they stick their heads up I’ll be glad to play what-a-mole with them.
September 17th, 2007 at 4:36 pm
To echo Joshua’s sentiments, great post. When I read your headline the first thing I thought of is what will Albright say? I would love to see him chime in on this and hear what his Shin Jeong-ah like excuse is.
September 17th, 2007 at 5:38 pm
Hanging judge you may be, but the law sees things the same way. Statements against a party’s interest may be admitted against party because the admission of a fact against one’s interest is considered more reliable than a denial of guilt or responsibility.
September 18th, 2007 at 7:49 am
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September 18th, 2007 at 9:14 am
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September 18th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
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September 18th, 2007 at 1:29 pm
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September 24th, 2007 at 5:59 am
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September 26th, 2007 at 2:06 am
A Kyodo story about confidential talks between U.S. and DPRK negotiators is highly suspect. The “sources” are obviously secondary at best, and very likely even further removed from the principals. My guess is that DPRK is not responding because no serious news outlet is picking it up.
I’m not saying it can’t be true, but it’s dangerous to build an argument on such an assumption.
September 26th, 2007 at 5:09 am
I’ve found that Kyodo often carries Six-Party Talks stories before other outlets (e.g., publishes accurate dates of upcoming talks before they are officially released, etc.).
September 28th, 2007 at 8:49 am
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October 3rd, 2007 at 7:56 am
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January 19th, 2009 at 11:28 am
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February 20th, 2009 at 11:37 pm
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June 16th, 2009 at 11:40 am
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