[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] First Strike 'Top Priority'... Yongbyon Nuclear Facility Is

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] Interest in the Yongbyon nuclear facility is increasing as North Korea is reported to have restarted the Yongbyon reactor facility.

The U.S. Wall Street Journal (WSJ) cited an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report on the 29th (local time), stating, "Since early July, there have been several signs such as the release of cooling water from the reactor."

North Korea's Yongbyon reactor facility is equipped with 2,000 centrifuges capable of producing up to 40 kg of highly enriched uranium (HEU) annually. If North Korea operates all 2,000 centrifuges, it can produce 40 kg of HEU per year. North Korea has uranium deposits estimated at 26 million tons, making it virtually possible to produce nuclear weapons indefinitely.

North Korea also conducted an event on June 27, 2008, where it blew up the cooling tower of the Yongbyon reactor. At that time, as North Korea showed willingness to resolve nuclear issues by submitting the Yongbyon reactor operation log, the U.S. began procedures to remove North Korea from the list of state sponsors of terrorism. In response, North Korea blew up the cooling tower of the Yongbyon 5MW reactor, which was targeted for disablement. However, about ten days later, a South Korean tourist visiting Mount Kumgang was shot and killed by North Korean soldiers, and in August of that year, North Korea halted the dismantling of the Yongbyon nuclear facility in protest against the U.S. delay in removing North Korea from the terrorism list.

Since then, movements at the Yongbyon reactor facility have been detected several times. The U.S. Johns Hopkins University North Korea monitoring website, '38 North,' reported that North Korea has been constructing new roads around the Yongbyon Nuclear Research Center since 2016. In 2019, Yukiya Amano, then head of the IAEA, claimed that North Korea continued to operate uranium enrichment facilities even during the second North Korea-U.S. summit.

A government official said, "If North Korea has restarted the Yongbyon reactor, it appears to be using it as a new card in negotiations to restore the Iran nuclear deal and in the diplomatic policies of the Joe Biden administration."

South Korea and the U.S. plan to conduct preemptive strikes on missile launch sites, including the Yongbyon reactor facility, if wartime conditions arise. When Defcon 1 is declared, mobilization orders will be issued, and wartime operations will commence. According to Operational Plan (OPLAN) 5015, South Korea and the U.S. will conduct preemptive strikes to counter North Korea's weapons of mass destruction (WMD) such as nuclear and missile threats, cyber warfare, and biochemical warfare.

South Korea and the U.S. have focused on practicing pinpoint strikes targeting Yongbyon nuclear facilities in Pyongyang, key command facilities, and major missile bases throughout North Korea. There are 700 Joint Defense Planning Installations (JDPI). This is the so-called "Shock and Awe" operation showcased during the Iraq War.

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