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North Korea set to resume nuclear disarmament drive
North Korea planned to resume dismantling its nuclear programme on Tuesday for the first time in two months, days after the United States removed the communist regime from a terrorism blacklist as a reward under a disarmament pact.
- Agencies
- Published: 23:50 October 14, 2008
Seoul: North Korea planned to resume dismantling its nuclear programme on Tuesday for the first time in two months, days after the United States removed the communist regime from a terrorism blacklist as a reward under a disarmament pact.
Pyongyang has told the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that it would restart work to disable the Yongbyon nuclear reactor and allow international inspectors to resume their activity. The plans were outlined in a restricted document to the agency's 35 board members that was obtained by the Associated Press.
Separately, IAEA spokeswoman Melissa Fleming said agency inspectors "will also now be permitted to reapply the containment and surveillance measures at the reprocessing facility". That meant agency seals taken off the plant and monitoring cameras recently removed at the North's orders would be restored.
The country's official Korean Central News Agency had given no word by yesterday afternoon if the work had gotten under way.
No information
South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young said he had no information whether the work had begun.
North Korea also said last Sunday it would restart work to disable Yongbyon, though it did not specify a date.
Two months ago, North Korea stopped disabling Yongbyon in anger over US demands that Pyongyang accept a plan to verify its accounting of nuclear programmes as a condition for removal from a blacklist of countries accused of sponsoring terrorism.
Until late last week, the North had threatened to reactivate the plutonium reprocessing plant at Yongbyon. But the North and the US reached a compromise on the verification row following a trip to Pyongyang by chief US nuclear envoy Christopher Hill.
Washington announced its removal of the North from the terror list last Saturday.
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