North Korea reveals first images of banned uranium enrichment site

North Korea on Friday (Sept 13) released the first images ofthe centrifuges that produce fuel for its nuclear bombs. Citing state media, a report by the news agency Reuters said that Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un visited theNuclear Weapons Instituteand called for more weapons-grade material to boost the arsenal.

The report said that the first images of the centrifuges, Kim'svisit to the Nuclear Weapons Institute and a production base for weapon-grade nuclear materials provided arare look inside Pyongyang'snuclear programme, which is banned under multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions.

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It is not yet known when Kim visited the site or where the facility was located.

North Korea's nuclear arsenal is vital

Kim urged workers to produce more materials for tactical nuclear weapons, saying the country's nuclear arsenal was vital for confronting threats from the United States (US) and its allies.

The weapons were needed for "self-defence and the capability for a preemptive attack," he added.

He also stressed theneed to increase the number of centrifuges to "exponentially increase" nuclear weapons and expand the use of a new type of centrifuge to further strengthen the production of weapon-grade nuclear materials.

North Korea has several sites forenriching uranium

The Reuters report said thatNorthKoreais believed to have several sites for enriching uranium. Commercialsatellite imagery has shown construction in recent years at the main Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center.

A few days back,International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi said on Monday that the UN nuclear watchdog had observed activity consistent with the operation of a reactor and the reported centrifuge enrichment facility at Yongbyon.

NorthKoreahas previously shown photos of what it says were nuclear warheads. It has conducted six underground nuclear tests between 2006 and 2017.

(With inputs from agencies)