"North Korea Estimated to Have 80 to 120 Nuclear Weapons"... National Defense Committee Focuses Questions on North's Nuclear Program

[Anchor]

Prompted by U.S. President Trump's remarks regarding North Korea's nuclear stockpile, the National Assembly's National Defense Committee focused today (August 20) on evaluating and responding to the North Korean nuclear threat. During the session, Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back stated that North Korea is estimated to possess up to about 120 nuclear weapons.

Reporter Kim Kwan-jin has the details.

[Reporter]

At the plenary meeting of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee held today,

when asked for the government's assessment after U.S. President Trump mentioned North Korea's nuclear inventory as 57, Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back responded as follows.

[Ahn Gyu-back / Minister of National Defense : We generally view it to be around 80 to 120, but it is quite limited to state an exact figure.]

However, Minister Ahn stated that North Korea cannot be officially recognized as a nuclear-armed state, adding that there is no change in the policy toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

The opposition party pointed out that since President Trump even mentioned specific numbers regarding nuclear weapons, there might be a change in the U.S. denuclearization policy toward North Korea, requiring a clear stance from the government.

[Sung Il-jong / People Power Party Lawmaker : The President of the United States clearly specified a number, 57. Therefore, the South Korean government needs to have a clear position on this.]

On the other hand, the Democratic Party emphasized the need for caution, stating that specifically discussing the number of North Korea's nuclear weapons could lead to acknowledging North Korea as a nuclear-armed state.

[Kim Byung-joo / Democratic Party Lawmaker : I think we must be very careful. Because that would amount to recognizing North Korea as a nuclear-armed state. Under no circumstances can we recognize North Korea as a nuclear-armed state.]

The adjustment of South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises and the transfer of wartime operational control also came under scrutiny. Minister Ahn stated that the South Korea-U.S. alliance is stronger than ever and that the two allies will continue their exercises while maintaining close communication even after the Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) drills.

(Video Editing: Yu Mi-ra)

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