North Korea’s fifth nuclear test seen as imminent ahead of key party congress in May: report

North Korea appears to be laying the groundwork for a fifth nuclear test ahead of next month’s ruling party congress, the first to be held in more than 30 years, a media report said Sunday, citing South Korean government sources.

The sources said South Korea had recently detected sharply increased vehicle and human activity at the North’s Punggye-ri nuclear test site, according to the Yonhap news agency report.

“Compared to last month, the frequency of vehicle, workforce and equipment movements increased two- to threefold recently,” the report cited multiple government sources as saying.

Officials concluded that this is a convincing sign that the North is preparing for its fifth nuclear test, the sources added.

“If they are signs of nuclear test preparations, it seems (the preparations) are in the final stages,” one of the sources said.

The news comes ahead of the Workers Party Congress slated for early May. Analysts believe North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will likely attempt to burnish his domestic credentials — including his accomplishments overseeing the country’s nuclear arsenal — at the key meeting.

The apparent preparations also come after the inaugural test of a powerful midrange missile by the North meant to mark the birthday of the country’s founder that ended in what the U.S. dubbed a “fiery, catastrophic” failure.

In January, Pyongyang stoked international outrage when it detonated what it called a hydrogen bomb, its fourth nuclear test. Experts, however, have poured cold water on this claim.

Pyongyang has also recently claimed to have mastered intercontinental ballistic missile technologies — including a re-entry vehicle and more powerful engine — as it works to miniaturize a warhead.

“If North Korea goes ahead with a fifth nuclear test, it may announce (after the test) a success in testing a miniaturized nuclear warhead that could be loaded onto an ICBM,” Yonhap quoted one source as saying.