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SÃO PAULO, (FOLHAPRESS)
The evidence, gathered after the June 12 summit in Singapore between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, shows preparations to deceive the United States on the number of nuclear warheads in the arsenal of the North Korea, as well as the existence of secret facilities used to manufacture equipment for nuclear bombs, according to these officials.
These results go in the opposite direction of Trump's remarks in the days following the meeting with Kim when he stated that North Korea was no longer a nuclear threat.
US intelligence officials and experts of the Asian dictatorship, however, have always taken a more cautious stance. For them, the dictator's promises to denuclearize the Korean peninsula were very similar to those made by his father and grandfather (the previous leadership of the regime), even as they secretly continued to accelerate efforts to produce nuclear weapons.
The new investigation was conducted in the weeks following the meeting between Kim and Trump – the first between a US president and a North Korean dictator.
He points out that the North Korean authorities are investigating ways to mislead Washington on the number of nuclear warheads and missiles, as well as on the types and quantities of facilities available to them. , believing that the United States is unaware of the full range of its activities. .
Intelligence agencies have estimated for at least a year that Pyongyang has about 65 nuclear warheads. The North Korean authorities plan to declare a smaller number.
The only nuclear weapons production facility recognized by North Korea is Yongbyon, 100 km north of Pyongyang. It is estimated that the site has produced material for up to two dozen warheads.
Meanwhile, North Koreans also operated an underground uranium enrichment site known as Kangson. Its existence was first examined in the Washington Post's May issue.
US authorities believe that the site has twice the enrichment capacity of Yongbyon. US intelligence agencies became aware of the nuclear facility in 2010.
The White House has not officially commented on the results revealed by the Washington Post, but National Security Advisor John Bolton did not deny it during an interview Sunday.
"I will simply say this: we use all our abilities to understand what North Korea does."
"None of those involved in these negotiations is naive, the president said that he would not repeat the mistakes of previous governments," he added.
This sentence may refer to the agreements negotiated by the governments of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush with North Korea in the 1990s and 2000s, which have never prevented the Asian country from developing its nuclear program.
In a recorded interview before the release of the information, Trump renewed his confidence in the process.
"I made a deal with him [Kim] shaking hands, I really believe you are serious," said the president.
Questions about the meeting between Kim and Trump:
– Is North Korea's nuclear program coming to an end?
No, it's still far from that. The text signed by the two leaders speaks only of "an unconditional commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula", but does not specify how it will work;
– Will international sanctions end?
At this moment, they are still standing. Their end will depend on the participation of North Koreans;
– The Korean War is over?
No, but after the meeting of the leaders of the two Koreas in April, the meeting with Trump would be a step closer to the end;
– Will the United States stop having military personnel in the region?
Trump says that he intends to withdraw soldiers from South Korea, but not at that time.
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