UN Report Says North Korea Probably Has 'Miniaturized' Nuclear Weapons

North Korea is continuing to evolve its nuclear weapons program and probably has developed miniature nuclear devices to fit on its ballistic missiles, according to a confidential report submitted to the United Nations Security Council committee on North Korea sanctions, Reuters is reporting.

The report, which Reuters said it has seen a copy of, was written by an independent panel of experts monitoring U.N. sanctions on North Korea, and attributed the claim of miniaturization to “several countries” which believed the communist regime’s six nuclear tests had likely helped that goal.

“The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is continuing its nuclear program, including the production of highly enriched uranium and construction of an experimental light water reactor,” the report said. “A Member State assessed that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is continuing production of nuclear weapons.”

North Korea has “probably developed miniaturized nuclear devices to fit into the warheads of its ballistic missiles,” it added.

North Korea has not conducted a nuclear test since September 2017. Reuters said the North Korea mission to the United Nations in New York did not respond to a request for comment.

Last week, during a speech to veterans of the Korean War on the anniversary of the armistice that ended the conflict, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said that with its nuclear weapons “the security and future of our state will be guaranteed forever.”

• UN Experts: North Korea Flouts Sanctions on Nukes, Missiles
• North Korea's Kim Marks war Anniversary amid Virus Concerns