North Korea has been ramping up its weapons development programme as tensions between leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump continue to grow.
South Korean officials and independent weapons experts have warned Pyongyang could be harbouring the intent and capability to develop biological weapons.
Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) expert Joshua Pollack said: “It seems North Korea invested a lot in imported equipment that cost them a lot and is, I think, unreasonable for any civilian application.”
Reports suggest North Korea currently has 13 types of biological agents which it can weaponise within ten days, including smallpox and anthrax.
Speaking to CNN, Mr Pollack said: “Anthrax is virtually the ideal biological agent for weapon purposes.
“It’s a bacterium that is very hearty, it can survive all kinds of conditions, it can persist, it is very deadly. You can aerosolise it and spread it around.”
The threat of WMD attacks from North Korea has been a constant for Seoul, which has been carrying out mock drills for years.
North Korea’s gains in its WMD development have alarmed US analysts who fear a surge in mass production as frictions between Pyongyang and Washington continue to fuel fears of World War 3.
A US military official said: “That the North Koreans have biological agents is knows, by various means.
“The lingering question is why have they acquired the materials and developed the science, but not yet produced weapons?”
The hermit state has defiantly continued its testing of ballistic missiles as angry rhetoric tyrant Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump continues.
On November 29, it test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile which it said was its most advanced yet, capable of reaching the mainland United States.
After the secretive state’s most recent missile launch, it warned it was now capable of striking any country in the world.