UN Nuclear Watchdog Confirms North Korea Built New Uranium Enrichment Facility at Yongbyon

A satellite image reveals a nuclear material production factory in Yongbyon, North Korea, on May 17, 2026.

According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), North Korea has constructed a new uranium enrichment facility at its primary Yongbyon nuclear complex capable of housing up to 28 centrifuge cascades, alongside launching operations at an expanded annex at its Kangson enrichment site.

The Vienna-based nuclear watchdog stated in a report that these findings indicate a continuous growth of North Korea’s nuclear infrastructure across multiple sites. Released on August 28, the report utilized satellite imagery and open-source materials, including photos from North Korean state media, to monitor the nuclear activities of Pyongyang. The agency has lacked inspectors inside North Korea since 2009.

By comparing state media images from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's June visit with construction-phase satellite photos, the IAEA identified a new two-storey building at Yongbyon as the site's secondary uranium enrichment facility. The report noted that photographs from the visit suggest gas centrifuge cascades are set up on both floors of the main building, potentially holding up to 28 cascades.

Furthermore, the IAEA reported signs that operations commenced in January at the uranium enrichment facility in Kangson, located near Pyongyang, inside an annex built in 2024. The agency emphasized that these advancements in North Korea’s nuclear program breach UN Security Council resolutions.

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi stated to the board of governors that the continuous operation of enrichment facilities in Kangson and Yongbyon, combined with the reported increase in weapons-grade nuclear material production by the DPRK, presents a grave concern.

Pyongyang has consistently dismissed the agency's authority. North Korea’s mission to the United Nations in Vienna asserted previously that the country's status as a nuclear weapons state is irreversible, declaring that the IAEA holds no legal right to interfere in the internal affairs of a nuclear weapons state existing outside the NPT.