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N Korea closes more reactors
18/07/2007 12:04 - (SA)
Beijing - North Korea has shut down all the facilities at its main nuclear reactor site, the UN atomic watchdog said on Wednesday, as crucial talks on the next phase of disarmament were set to begin in Beijing.
International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei said his inspectors had verified that four other plutonium-related sites had been closed, following Saturday's shutdown of North Korea's main Yongbyon reactor.
"We have verified that all five nuclear facilities have been shut down," ElBaradei told reporters in Malaysia.
The closure was the first step in a six-nation accord brokered in February that would see North Korea eventually abandon its nuclear weapons programme in return for a range of incentives.
With Yongbyon shut down, negotiators said, this week's talks should focus on convincing North Korea to declare all of its nuclear programmes and then disable them in line with the February 13 disarmament deal.
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