The nuclear non-proliferation treaty in retrospect: The case of North Korea

Abstract

In June 1994 the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) tested a nuclear device, and the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK, North Korea) announced its intention to withdraw from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a specialized agency of the United Nations. A brief look at the history of the effort to control the development and proliferation of atomic, and later nuclear, weapons provides some perspective on the actions of each country in 1994.