Both of them blinked,

The storage pond was empty. There are no spent fuel rods there,

Are they bluffing? I don't think so.

The North Koreans were using the Iranian example as well, saying that if they are allowed to keep a reactor, why can't we?

time is not on your side. As time goes by, we are increasing our arsenal.

This is unusual for it to have gone on sometime without contact.