Both Jeffrey and I have “written before,”:http://www.armscontrolwonk.com/index.php?id=688 about whether North Korea has a deliverable nuclear weapon.

Just to provide another data point, ROK intelligence reportedly “assessed in February”:http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20050727/pl_afp/nkoreanucleartalksweapons_050727033406 that Seoul’s northern neighbor may have nuclear devices, but probably can’t deliver them because they’re too heavy.

The relevant excerpt:

When North Korea said in February that it possessed nuclear weapons, confirming long-held suspicions in the United States, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service said Pyongyang probably lacked the technology to fire them on a rocket.

“North Korea might have developed one or two conventional nuclear bombs, but if it did, it may not have the technology to launch them on a missile,” the NIS report said.

“We believe North Korea has not acquired enough technology to miniaturize nuclear bombs which must weigh less than 500 kilograms to be mounted on a missile.”

I had seen the reporting about the NIS conclusions, but had forgotten about the 500 kg number.