U.S. Limits South Korea's Access to North Korea Nuclear Intelligence After Facility Disclosure

The United States restricted South Korea's access to intelligence related to North Korea's nuclear facilities in protest over the unification minister's disclosure of a uranium enrichment facility in Kusong, sources said. The restriction, reported on April 27, 2026, targets information sharing on North Korea's nuclear facilities collected via satellites, including details on a facility located in the western city of Kusong.

Complained about Unification Minister Chung Dong-young's disclosure of the information, which it believes was based on intelligence shared by Washington. Chung Dong-young referred to North Korea's Kusong region as one of three sites hosting uranium enrichment facilities at a parliamentary session last month.

The unification ministry said last week that Chung Dong-young made the remarks based on open information.

Neither Seoul nor Washington had officially recognized Kusong as a nuclear facility site in North Korea. Seoul and Washington identified only Yongbyon and Kangson as nuclear facility sites in North Korea. Kusong has been suspected of accommodating North Korea's nuclear facilities since the mid-2010s.

U.S. think tank cited Kusong as a potential location for one of North Korea's uranium enrichment facilities in 2016. U.S. decision. U.S. restriction did not immediately affect its intelligence gathering capabilities.

South Korean military officials cited real-time coordination between allies during North Korea's missile launches in March and April 2026. North Korea conducted a series of back-to-back missile launches in March and April 2026. The South Korean military is pushing to secure its own military reconnaissance satellites.