Photo : YONHAP News
International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said the international community must recognize that North Korea has nuclear weapons and pursue dialogue accordingly, despite Pyongyang’s violations of United Nations Security Council(UNSC) sanctions.
In an interview with The Associated Press on Thursday, Grossi questioned whether halting dialogue with Pyongyang has solved anything, suggesting it is instead “exacerbating the conditions for a situation that may go out of hand.”
The IAEA chief said there has not been any international engagement with the North since 2006, when the country became “a de facto nuclear weapon possessor state” and began to significantly expand its nuclear program.
Saying the North’s nuclear program should be condemned for violating UNSC sanctions and international law, Grossi nevertheless called on all parties to stop talking past each other.
Regarding a recent disclosure by the North that flaunted a uranium enrichment facility, Grossi said Pyongyang appears to have a vast nuclear program with no visibility in terms of whether it observes international nuclear safety standards.