SEOUL -- South Korea's intelligence sources said Friday that North Korea is capable of producing a nuclear weapon with less than 6 kilograms of plutonium, revising down its earlier estimate.Multiple government sources said while it usually takes 6 kilograms of plutonium to produce a nuclear weapon, the amount could be lower considering the development of technology in North Korea, implying that Pyongyang is capable of producing such a weapon with 5 kilograms.
South Korea estimates the North currently holds around 40 kilograms of plutonium, which can produce around eight nuclear weapons. Other sources added North Korea may have increased its holding of plutonium over the past months.
The sources added that North Korea is struggling to produce highly enriched uranium (HEU), although the details were not disclosed.