New activity at N Korea's plutonium plant: US think-tank

Latest satellite imagery shows new activity at North Korea's nuclear reprocessing facility known for producing fuel for nuclear bombs, according to a US-based think-tank.
Imagery captured on August 22 indicates high level of vehicle activity at the 5MWe reactor and radiochemical laboratory complex of the Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Centre which was not observed previously, US-Korea Institute of Johns Hopkins University wrote on its blog "38 North" yesterday.
The two areas at the facility produce plutonium for building nuclear weapons.
Vehicle tracks at the reactor extended into ground level of the building and out to a road where large trucks can easily manoeuvre, Kyodo news agency reported, citing the blog.

"A large truck is seen in position apparently awaiting a load. The level of track activity indicates that this is not the first truck to be loaded with material from the hall," analysts of the think-tank wrote in the blog.
At the complex, where plutonium is chemically separated from uranium and other radioactive materials, heavy vehicle tracks enter the facility, circle a support building and then extend to the spent fuel receiving building, they added.

The institute also said that while determining the reason for such an activity was impossible, possible explanations include maintenance or renovation activities as well as the moving of contaminated from the reactor to the reprocessing complex.

The reprocessing facility at the Yongbyon nuclear reactor was disabled following a 2007 agreement of six-nation talks on North Korea's denuclearisation involving host China, Japan, South Korea and Russia, but have been stalled since 2008.
The reactor was scheduled to start in April, 2013 but many problems have apparently been encountered in running the aged facility, according to the blog.