A working group of US experts arrived in Pyongyang on Thursday
for talks on disabling the nuclear facilities of North Korea.
The eight-member team, led by Kim Sung, director of the US State
Department's Office of Korean Affairs, will map out a plan for
future teams to begin disabling the Yongbyon nuclear reactor.
As a first step, the US experts would stay in North Korea for
about a week before another team took over in a "baton pass,"
according to the State Department.
North Korea agreed to disable all existing nuclear facilities
and provide a declaration of all its nuclear programs by the end of
this year, according to a joint document released on October 3 when
the second phase of the sixth round of six-party talks ended in
Beijing.
The document said the disabling of the five megawatt
Experimental Reactor, the Reprocessing Plant (Radiochemical
Laboratory) and the Nuclear Fuel Rod Fabrication Facility in
Yongbyon would be completed by December 31.
The US would lead the disablement and provide initial funding,
according to the document.
The six parties -- China, North and South Korea, the US, Russia
and Japan -- signed a landmark agreement on February 13 that
required North Korea to declare all nuclear programs and disable
all existing nuclear facilities, while the other parties must
provide a total of 1 million tons of heavy fuel oil or equivalent
aid to the country.
(Xinhua News Agency October 12, 2007)
