Another 'Election-Season' Remark? This Time: 'North Korea Has 112 Nuclear Missiles'

[Anchor]

U.S. President Donald Trump has once again mentioned a specific number regarding North Korea's nuclear weapons. Just a month and a half ago, he claimed there were 57, but this time he stated there are twice as many, 112. While it causes confusion as no basis has been provided, analyses suggest that the mid-term elections lie behind this public disclosure.

Reporting from Kim Minpyo.

[Reporter]

During a mid-term election campaign rally, U.S. President Donald Trump once again brought up North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, tossing out the number of nuclear weapons by saying, "When they have 112 nuclear missiles, it's good to get along."

[Donald Trump / U.S. President: We get along very well with Kim Jong-un. Kim Jong-un. Do you know who that is? Yes, North Korea. When people have 112 nuclear missiles, it's good to get along.]

Since he made the remark while emphasizing his good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, "112 nuclear missiles" appears to refer to the number possessed by North Korea.

This is the third time President Trump has disclosed down to the exact digit the number of classified North Korean nuclear weapons.

The figure grew from 45 in April to 57 in August, and now nearly doubled in a month and a half.

There was no explanation given as to why the figures differ so much.

Regarding the background of this additional disclosure, analyses suggest it is either to highlight that President Trump, ahead of the mid-term elections, is keeping the North Korean nuclear threat under control, or to send a message to leader Kim urging dialogue.

[Hong Min / Senior Research Fellow, Korea Institute for National Unification: When sending a message showing full awareness of North Korea's nuclear weapons, North Korea, too, may have more room to consider dialogue more positively.]

Domestic research institutions estimate the number of North Korean nuclear weapons to be between 80 and 120.

[Ahn Gyu-back / Former Minister of National Defense (Aug. 20): We generally view it to be around 80 to 120. Giving an exact figure is quite limited.]

While President Trump has consistently shown an attitude acknowledging North Korea's possession of nuclear weapons, he has made it clear that he will not tolerate nuclear development by Iran, which does not yet possess nuclear weapons.

(Video Editing: Jung Yong-hwa)

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