North Korea resumes nuclear disabling work

Seoul: North Korea has resumed nuclear disablement work following a US decision to remove Pyongyang from a terrorism blacklist, a foreign ministry spokesman said on Sunday.

"As the US fulfilled its commitment to make political compensation and a fair verification procedure in line with the phase of disablement was agreed upon between the DPRK (North Korea) and the US, the DPRK decided to resume the disablement of nuclear facilities in Yongbyon," the KCNA news agency quoted a foreign ministry spokesman as saying.

Earlier, Kim Sook, South Korean ambassador to international nuclear talks with North Korea, said the North informed the United States it would "immediately return to disabling work" at its Yongbyon nuclear facility after the US made the announcement on Saturday.

North Korea stopped disablement in mid-August in anger at the US over what it called a delay in the terror delisting.

Christopher Hill, Washington's top nuclear ambassador for North Korea, visited the country earlier this month to try and resolve the impasse.