Seoul: North Korea's western city of Kusong has gained attention following Unification Minister Chung Dong-young's controversial remarks identifying it as a nuclear facility site, despite its long-standing suspicion as a location for uranium enrichment.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Chung mentioned Kusong, along with Yongbyon and Kangson, during a parliamentary session as sites housing North Korea's uranium enrichment facilities. This statement marked a rare public disclosure by a government official naming the western city as a nuclear site. The United States protested the comments, believing them to be based on U.S. intelligence, and partially suspended intelligence sharing with Seoul, accusing Chung of leaking classified information.
Neither Seoul nor Washington had officially recognized Kusong as a nuclear facility site, with only Yongbyon and Kangson previously identified. Since the mid-2010s, suspicions have mounted that Kusong, located 50 kilometers northwest of the Yongbyon nuclear complex, hosts a uranium enrichment facility central to advancing North Korea's nuclear weapons program.
A 2016 report by the U.S.-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) cited the Panghyon Aircraft Plant in Kusong as a potential site for up to 300 centrifuges. In a 2024 interview, Bruce Bennett from the RAND think tank highlighted Kusong's Yongdok district as housing a large underground facility, potentially used for uranium enrichment.
Uranium enrichment facilities use centrifuges to produce weapons-grade uranium, often concealed underground, unlike plutonium facilities with visible nuclear reactors. Details about North Korea's Yongbyon complex and the Kangson facility have been more clearly identified, with Yongbyon presumed to hold thousands of centrifuges, and Kangson suspected of holding several thousand to over 10,000 centrifuges.
Washington's decision to limit intelligence sharing with Seoul after Chung's reference to Kusong indicates a possible acknowledgment of the region as a nuclear site. In response, the South Korean government investigated officials at the unification ministry, concluding that Chung had not leaked U.S. intelligence.
On Wednesday, the unification ministry clarified that Chung's remarks were based on publicly available information, including ISIS and media reports, to emphasize the seriousness of North Korea's nuclear issue. The ministry noted Chung had made similar remarks during his confirmation hearing, mentioning Kusong as a uranium enrichment site.
The ministry also referred to a report by the U.S.-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) as evidence of ongoing nuclear activities in Kusong. However, Victor Cha, Korea chair at CSIS, stated on his X account that their report was about high explosive test triggers, not enrichment activities at Kusong. The ministry stated that Chung's reference to the CSIS report was intended to highlight North Korea's continued nuclear activities.