UN Inspectors Leave North Korean Nuclear Site

Japan, US Eye New Targets for Sanctions

Inspectors for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have turned off their surveillance cameras and left North Korea’s Yongbyon nuclear facility today, just one day after North Korea ordered them out in retaliation for a UN Security Council resolution. The inspection team is expected to leave the nation tomorrow. North Korea says it will never again return to the denuclearization talks and intends to “further strengthen our nuclear deterrent to cope with additional military threats by hostile forces.”

North Korea had previously ousted inspectors from Yongbyon in October during a dispute over the terms of the deal. The reactor’s plutonium was reportedly used in a 2006 North Korea nuclear test explosion.

Japan and the United States are reportedly compiling lists of North Korean companies, banks and missile-related equipment which will be targeted by UN sanctions. The latest crisis is the result of Western outrage over last weekend’s North Korean satellite launch, which they say was cover for a missile test.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.