North Korea shuts down nuclear reactor

Kim Myong Gil, the North Korean minister to the United Nations in New York City, New York, claims his government has shut down its infamous reactor located in Yongbyon and is ready to start dismantling its nuclear programmes as long as the United States keeps its promise to remove all sanctions and remove North Korea from the terrorism list.

The 10 members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspection team will be going to North Korea to verify the shut down has taken place. The inspectors were forced to leave North Korea in late 2002 when this crisis began. The South Korean government has sent the North 50,000 tons of fuel oil as a reward for starting to dismantle its nuclear programmes and will send one million tons more.

The South Korea's nuclear envoy Chun Yung-woo called the shut down of the Yongbyon a milestone event but said the next phase will be more difficult than the reactor shut down.