Dangerous rocket fuel sent from China and Russia is the key to North Korea’s nuke programme
Devil's Venom is the nickname for the highly volatile liquid combination of chemicals being used to fuel Kim Jong-un's rockets
A DANGEROUS rocket fuel dubbed “Devil’s Venom” has been the key to the success of North Korea’s ballistic missile program - and it may be too late to stop the rogue nation from producing it itself.
Devil’s Venom is the Russian nickname for unsymmetrical dimethyl hydrazine (UDMH), a volatile liquid combination of chemicals used to fuel rockets.
It is believed that China or Russia has supplied the propellant to North Korea over the decades but The New York Times reports that .
UDMH was used in the Soviet Union rocket disaster of 1960, a massive explosion at the launch pad of a intercontinental ballistic missile. The resulting fireball and toxic gasses was responsible for at least 124 deaths.
The US abandoned use of the toxic fuel long ago, with NASA warning of its dangers as far back as 1966 with a video that opens with a spectacular explosion.
North Korea, meanwhile, used the volatile propellant as recently as last Friday when it launched a mid-range missile over Japan.
In pushing for United Nations sanctions, the Trump administration has focused on limiting the supply of oil and gas to the nation but UDMH is produced without the need for oil.
“Based on North Korea’s demonstrated science and technological capabilities — coupled with the priority Pyongyang places on missile programs — North Korea probably is capable of producing UDMH domestically,” Timothy Barrett, a spokesman for the director of national intelligence, told the Times.
The article suggests that stopping Kim Jong-un's use of the fuel - either by sanctions or sabotage - could be the key to crippling the country’s weapons program.
“If North Korea does not have UDMH, it cannot threaten the United States, it’s as simple as that,” Democratic senator Edward Markey said.
North Korea’s nuclear weapons program will be a major topic of discussion at this week’s United Nations General Assembly in New York.
US President Donald Trump is expected to discuss the threat in a speech on Tuesday.
The flight was to “demonstrate the deterrence capability of the US-South Korea alliance against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats”, South Korea said in a statement.
North Korea has reacted angrily to fresh UN sanctions, saying via its official news agency that they were “strangling and suffocating” the country and its civilian population.
In a statement, the North Korea foreign ministry said pressure from the US and its allies “will only increase our pace towards the ultimate completion of the state nuclear force”.
“This is the most vicious, unethical and inhumane act of hostility to physically exterminate the people of the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republican of Korea], let alone its system and government,” the ministry said.
