natural resources, such as oil, gas and timber while Burma's rulers need access to military equipment, which has been blocked by US and European sanctions." On 25 April 2007, The State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) that had risen to power following the 8888 Uprising, finally formally restored the relations. Shwe Mann visited Pyongyang the following year in secret. He is said to have signed a memorandum of understanding about further military cooperation with the two countries. North Korea began to support the SPDC by supplying weapons. These included and small arms ammunition, 130 mm field guns, and ship mounted surface-to-surface missiles. North Korean freighters would frequent the ports of Myanmar and technicians would visit the country, including at the Monkey Point naval facility in Yangon. In Naypyidaw, North Korean military engineers constructed shelters for the Tatmadaw. There were plans to buy a North Korean submarine. These activities caused international alarm. Cooperation on nuclear issues Myanmar and North Korea are believed to cooperate on nuclear issues with the goal of a nuclear weapons program of Myanmar. The military of Myanmar was motivated because it "couldn't help but notice how North Korea stood up to the US, a harsh critic of the Burmese regime, mainly due to its nuclear program." There is, however, skepticism in the international community regarding the issue because similar accusations concerning Iraq were proven false. In 2003, Myanmar sent 30 officials to North Korea to study reactor technology. Another possibility is that they went to North Korea to train using missiles, which Myanmar wanted to buy from the country but could not afford at that point. The SPDC has contemplated purchasing an entire nuclear reactor from North Korea. In 2006, they started buying from North Korea tools required to construct a reactor. North Korea has bought uranium from Myanmar, which in turn has purchased North Korean equipment for uranium enrichment and plutonium production. North Korean nuclear experts are working in the Tha Beik Kyin area of Myanmar. The North Korean cargo ship MV Bong Hoafan was seen in a port of Myanmar in November 2006. Officially, she was sheltering from a storm, but foreign diplomats were concerned about the ship's presence. Next year, just days after diplomatic relations were restored, another North Korean ship, the Kang Nam 1, arrived at Thilawa Port. She too was said to shelter from a strom, but after two Burmese journalists hired