Go to contents

N. Korea dismantles Punggye-ri nuclear test site

Posted May. 25, 2018 07:27,   

Updated May. 25, 2018 07:27

한국어

North Korea has dismantled the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, where the regime had conducted six nuclear tests since 2006, on Thursday. This marks the first practical step that Pyongyang has taken after its nuclear moratorium statement. The communist regime continued on the war of nerves, however, mentioning a potential reviewing of the summit meeting between Washington and Pyongyang.

The South Korean authorities said that the North conducted a closing ceremony of the nuclear site in the presence of journalists from foreign countries including the South and the United States on Thursday afternoon. Having demolished the entrance by exploding four mines, the North is reportedly planning to shut down the vicinity of the Punggye-ri nuclear test site by tearing down observatory facilities and laboratories.

By proceeding with the demolition of the nuclear test site as scheduled, Pyongyang has shown the intention not to disrupt the framework of the North Korea-U.S. negotiation to exchange denuclearization with the regime’s security. Pundits say that the latest move by Pyongyang is a gesture to prod the Trump administration into offering a “more generous” compensation for its denuclearization effort.


weappon@donga.com