Iran has allegedly paid North Korea US$2 billion over the past three years in exchange for enriched uranium. Japan's Sankei Shimbun newspaper claimed Thursday that North Korea exported enriched uranium from a nuclear facility in Yongbyon to Tehran, which needed the material for its nuclear program. North Korea is said to have received hard currency to purchase the necessary equipment and centrifuges to build other nuclear plants.
The newspaper added that an Iranian delegation traveled to Pyongyang once a year since 2008 to handle the financial transactions.