[Al Arabiya Latest] North Korea said Saturday it started reprocessing spent fuel rods to make weapons-grade plutonium, in an apparent response to a United Nations decision to punish it for a controversial rocket launch. "The reprocessing of spent fuel rods from the pilot atomic power plant began as declared in the Foreign Ministry statement dated April 14," a foreign ministry spokesman told the official Korean Central News Agency."This will contribute to bolstering the nuclear deterrence for self-defense in every way to cope with the increasing military threats from the hostile forces."
North Korea on April 14 announced it would quit six-nation nuclear disarmament talks and restart its atomic weapons program in protest at the U.N.'s statement condemning the launch.
Pyongyang says it put a satellite into orbit but the United States and its allies say it conducted a disguised long-range ballistic missile test.