Contents

SIPRI Yearbook 2021

SIPRI Yearbook 2021

IX. North Korean nuclear forces

Chapter:
10. World nuclear forces
Source:
SIPRI Yearbook 2021
Author(s):
Hans M. Kristensen, Matt Korda

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK, or North Korea) maintains an active but highly opaque nuclear weapon programme. As of January 2021, it is estimated that North Korea possessed sufficient fissile material for approximately 40–50 nuclear weapons (see table 10.10). This is an increase of 10 from the previous year’s estimate due to additional production of fissile material. The estimate is based on calculations of the amount of fissile material—plutonium and highly enriched uranium (HEU)—that North Korea is estimated to have produced for use in nuclear weapons (see section X). It is unknown how much of this material has been used to produce warheads for North Korea’s ballistic missiles.1 Analysing the numbers and types of North Korean warheads and delivery vehicles is fraught with uncertainty due to limited official public data; some of the data presented here is derived from satellite imagery and North Korean media sources, which can be subject to manipulation or exaggeration.

Citation (MLA):
Kristensen, Hans M., and Matt Korda. "10. World nuclear forces." SIPRI Yearbook. SIPRI. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2016. Web. 16 Feb. 2025. <https://www.sipriyearbook.org/view/9780192847577/sipri-9780192847577-chapter-010-div1-060.xml>.
Citation (APA):
Kristensen, H., & Korda, M. (2016). 10. World nuclear forces. In SIPRI, SIPRI Yearbook 2021: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Retrieved 16 Feb. 2025, from https://www.sipriyearbook.org/view/9780192847577/sipri-9780192847577-chapter-010-div1-060.xml
Citation (Chicago):
Kristensen, Hans M., and Matt Korda. "10. World nuclear forces." In SIPRI Yearbook 2021: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security, SIPRI. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016). Retrieved 16 Feb. 2025, from https://www.sipriyearbook.org/view/9780192847577/sipri-9780192847577-chapter-010-div1-060.xml
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