There were reports that North Korea continued to strengthen its nuclear and missile capabilities while focusing on summit diplomacy with the United States through friendship exchange.
The Washington Post (WP) reported that North Korea made efforts to build nuclear weapons protection facilities and increase nuclear warheads even during the exchange of friendships between the two leaders, citing the report of the North Korean Sanctions Committee under the UN Security Council and former and current officials from South Korea and the United States.
The WP said that experts estimate that North Korea is currently producing fissile material that can make up to seven nuclear warheads per year at its nuclear facilities. This is because North Korea increased its nuclear warheads by 15 after the Singapore-North Korea summit in June 2018. He said it meant there was a possibility
The WP emphasized that the construction of North Korea's six military bases that produce and test missiles and parts is active, and that underground construction activities, including the construction of new bunkers and tunnels under existing bunkers and storage facilities, have increased rapidly.
Trucks from six missile bases in North Korea are carrying rocks from excavation of new tunnels and bunkers, WP said.
North Korea, however, has stopped testing nuclear and long-range missiles since the 2018 summit between President Trump and Chairman Kim.
The WP insisted that President Trump and Chairman Kim benefited from the suspension of such tests, but that there was no tangible progress toward the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, which the United States aimed for.
Earlier, the UN Sanctions Committee on North Korea pointed out in a recent interim report on an expert panel that North Korea continued to manufacture nuclear bombs by miniaturizing its nuclear warheads so that it could be mounted on its own ballistic missile.