Report: N. Korea set for 3rd nuke test by March
SEOUL — North Korea appears to be readying for a possible third nuclear test as early as next March, a newspaper reported Wednesday, as New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson headed to Pyongyang on an unofficial diplomatic foray.
U.S. and South Korean intelligence have been watching the North’s nuclear sites for any activity.
Analysts say the North could use a test to try to gain leverage in international talks it is seeking and secure aid to prop up its destitute economy.
The New York Times reported Wednesday that the Obama administration has concluded that that North Korea’s new plant to enrich nuclear fuel uses technology that is “significantly more advanced” than what Iran has assembled.
North Korea already has the fuel for as many as 12 nuclear weapons, the newspaper said.
South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo daily on Wednesday cited an intelligence official from Seoul as saying a tunnel was being dug at the country’s nuclear test site that could be completed in March next year, possibly heralding a new nuclear test.