<P> Also in 2015, Melissa Hanham of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies released an analysis of photo of North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong - un visiting the Pyongyang Bio-technical Institute, a factory supposedly for the production of bacillus thuringiensis of use in pesticides . Hanham's analysis concluded that the factory actually produces weaponized anthrax . Hanham noted that pesticide production factories are "an old and well - used cover for a biological weapons program" and an example of dual - use technology . A number of other experts agreed that "the photos most likely show an operational biological weapons facility ." The North Korean government denied the allegations; an official spokesperson for the National Defence Commission, through the official Korean Central News Agency, challenged the U.S. Congress to inspect the Institute and "behold the awe - inspiring sight of the Pyongyang Bio-technical Institute ." </P> <P> North Korea possesses various types of chemical weapons, including nerve, blister, blood, and vomiting agents, as well as some biological weapons, including anthrax, smallpox, and cholera . </P> <P> In 2017, Kim Jong - nam, the estranged elder half - brother of Kim Jong - un, was assassinated with VX nerve agent at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia by suspected North Korean agents . </P> <P> The identified stockpile is between 2,500 and 5,000 metric tons of chemical weapons . It is one of the world's largest possessors of chemical weapons, ranking third after the United States and Russia . </P>

Where does north korea get its nuclear weapons from