“A new U.S. military intelligence assessment says for the first time that North Korea may have developed a nuclear device small enough to mount on a ballistic missile, but said such a weapon’s “reliability would be low.”
In an assessment by the Defense Intelligence Agency, a branch of the Pentagon, analysts appeared to upgrade U.S. estimates of North Korea’s nuclear-weapons abilities, according to a portion of the report disclosed by a lawmaker at a House hearing on Thursday.
There was disagreement in Washington over the extent of North Korea’s capabilities, with Obama administration officials and the Pentagon press office saying there isn’t evidence that the country could use such a weapon.
Tensions are running high in Washington over how best to address the North Korean threat without triggering precipitous reactions from U.S. allies in North Asia. The White House has made an effort to rein in tensions and more tightly control the message, but as the varying interpretations of Pyongyang’s abilities show, that can be difficult on politically charged issues.
The Defense Intelligence Agency, or DIA, rated its confidence in its finding as “moderate.” Experts said that, if proven accurate, the assessment would mark a dangerous advance in the North Korean program.
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