The UN atomic agency has launched an investigation into whether South Korea plans to produce weapons-grade plutonium at a facility it is building, a diplomat told AFP. The pilot facility uses “pyrometallurgical processing” to make spent fuel into a compact and less radioactive form for storage, said the diplomat, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue. “What’s critical in all this is to make sure that when reducing spent fuel that the South Koreans don’t separate out plutonium,” said the diplomat, who is close to the watchdog. Full Story