Seoul: North Korea may hold up to 120 nuclear warheads
South Korea's defense minister said North Korea likely possesses between 80 and 120 nuclear warheads, though an exact count remains difficult to determine.
South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said on Wednesday that North Korea's arsenal likely consists of between 80 and 120 nuclear warheads, offering the latest official estimate of Pyongyang's nuclear capabilities.
The minister acknowledged that this figure is an approximation, stressing that determining the precise size of North Korea's nuclear stockpile remains a difficult task. Pyongyang has long kept its nuclear program shrouded in secrecy, leaving outside observers and intelligence services to rely on indirect evidence and estimates rather than confirmed figures.
Seoul's assessment adds to a series of international estimates in recent years attempting to gauge the scale of North Korea's nuclear capability. Such projections are typically based on analysis of available fissile material stockpiles, intelligence gathering, and North Korea's declared or observed missile and nuclear testing programs.
The size and pace of development of North Korea's nuclear arsenal remains one of the central security concerns on the Korean Peninsula and in the wider East Asian region, shaping both regional security policy and international arms control discussions.
