Nuclear proliferation

A TV screen shows a news report on North Korea's missile launch with file footage of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, at a train station in Seoul on May 4. North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward its eastern waters, South Korean and Japanese offic

North Korea may conduct a missile or nuclear test timed with Biden's visit to Asia

1:01pm May 19, 2022

by Anthony Kuhn

Pyongyang has conducted 16 missile test launches this year. Seoul and Washington are on alert for a possible new test launch, timed to coincide with President Biden's visit starting Friday.

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Pope Francis observes a minute of silence in memory of the victims of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima during his visit to the city's Peace Memorial Park on Sunday.

Pope Francis, In Visit To Hiroshima, Says Possession Of Nuclear Weapons Is 'Immoral'

4:56pm November 24, 2019

by Laurel Wamsley

The nuclear arms race wastes resources that could instead improve people's lives and protect the environment, the pontiff said. His tour marks the first papal visit to Japan in nearly 40 years.

North Korea's latest short-range missile, tested on May 4, looks similar to Russia's Iskander missile. North Korea describes it as a "tactical guided weapon."

North Korea's Newest Missile Appears Similar To Advanced Russian Design

11:27am May 08, 2019

by Geoff Brumfiel

Experts say the missile, tested on May 4 as part of a "strike drill," could be a new and destabilizing weapon on the Korean Peninsula.

North Korea's Unha-3 rocket lifts off from the Sohae launchpad in Dongchang-ri, North Korea, in this Dec. 12, 2012, photo released by the Korean Central News Agency.

North Korea Seen Reassembling Rocket Test Site

8:12am March 06, 2019

by Geoff Brumfiel

Just days after the U.S.-North Korea summit ended in stalemate, satellite images show workers have been active at the Sohae Satellite Launching Station, a partially disassembled missile test facility.

Satellite image of the Yongbyon Nuclear Research Center in North Korea, taken on Feb. 19

On Eve Of 2nd Trump-Kim Summit, Is North Korean Reactor Producing Plutonium?

10:50am February 25, 2019

by Geoff Brumfiel

Days before President Trump and Kim Jong Un are to meet in Vietnam, satellite images show no river ice downstream from the key North Korean facility at Yongbyon — a sign the reactor may be running.

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President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed a declaration in June, but the vague language may be hampering further negotiations.

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North Korea Denuclearization Plan Has Gone Nowhere Since Trump-Kim Summit

7:40am November 19, 2018

by Geoff Brumfiel

Five months after the Singapore summit, North Korea's nuclear program chugs on. "I think right now, we are absolutely stuck," says North Korea expert Sue Mi Terry, a former CIA analyst.

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At a press conference on Tuesday, President Trump said North Korea would dismantle a missile test site. But without further details, experts say it may not mean much.

Trump Says North Korea Will Destroy Missile Site. But Which One?

5:18pm June 12, 2018

by Geoff Brumfiel

The president boasted Tuesday of a bonus "favor" from Kim Jong Un, but experts say it might not mean much without independent verification.

President Trump talks about North Korea during a briefing on the opioid crisis Tuesday at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J.

Trump Says U.S. Will Meet North Korean Threats With 'Fire And Fury'

8:16pm August 08, 2017

by Scott Neuman

The president's remarks, made during a meeting while he is on a "working vacation" in New Jersey, follow similar remarks by North Korea a day earlier.

South Koreans watch television coverage of the July 4 launch of a Hwasong-14 intercontinental ballistic missile, ICBM, in North Korea.

North Korea Reportedly Capable Of Making Nuclear-Tipped Missiles

6:43pm August 08, 2017

by Scott Neuman

According to a report in The Washington Post that quotes unnamed intelligence officials, Pyongyang is believed to have perfected the ability to produce nuclear warheads for its ballistic missiles.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists announced during a news conference Thursday that its advisory group is moving the Doomsday Clock 30 seconds closer to midnight.

The Doomsday Clock Is Reset: Closest To Midnight Since The 1950s

12:12pm January 26, 2017

by Bill Chappell

Criticizing President Trump, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists sees increased risk in dangers to humanity, from the proliferation of nuclear weapons to climate change.