The chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA) has said that North Korea appears to be preparing for a nuclear test at its Punggye-ri nuclear test site.

Director-General Rafael Grossi presented the assessment in his introductory statement at a session of the IAEA Board of Governors on Monday in Vienna, which has been shared on the agency’s website.  

Grossi told the session that one of the tunnel entrances at the nuclear test site at Punggye-ri has been reopened, possibly in preparation for a nuclear test.

The IAEA chief also said the watchdog is continuing to detect signs that the five megawatt reactor at the North's main nuclear site at Yongbyon is operational.

Grossi told the board that construction work expanding the key facilities at Yongbyon is also advancing.

He noted that the annex to the reported Centrifuge Enrichment Facility is externally complete as a roof has been installed on the annex.

He also said near the light water reactor at the site, the new building that has been under construction since April 2021 has been completed and construction has started on two adjacent buildings.