 SEOUL - North Korea has begun preparations to shutdown and seal its key Yongbyon nuclear reactor, South Korea’s top nuclear envoy said on Saturday, according to the Yonhap news agency. Pyongyang was also willing to start moving towards disabling its nuclear facilities but its actions would depend on how soon it will be rewarded, Chun Yung-woo told reporters in Beijing. “North Korea said it has begun preparations to shut down the Yongbyon nuclear facilities. It said it will disable the facilities as soon as conditions are met,” the envoy said.
| Show us that your secret uranium processing plant has been shuttered too ... |
Under a February 13 accord, Pyongyang promised to begin shutting down its nuclear programme within two months in exchange for energy aid and diplomatic concessions. A follow-up round of disarmament negotiations, which group the two Koreas, China, the United States, Russia and Japan, begins in Beijing on Monday. |