CHINA:Diplomats in Beijing yesterday worked towards a deal to press North Korea to complete the decommissioning of nuclear facilities by the end of the year.
The latest moves came as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed a key atomic complex was now locked down.
The IAEA said N Korea had now shut five main nuclear facilities at Yongbyon. As well as a reactor already confirmed shut at the weekend, they included an atomic fuel reprocessing plant that can extract the plutonium that Pyongyang used for its first nuclear test last year.
In Beijing, talks aimed at ending N Korea's nuclear ambitions were focused on the next disarmament steps. Those talks have brought together North and South Korea, the US, China, Japan and Russia since 2003. In February, North Korea agreed to close Yongbyon in return for 50,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil.
Under "phase two" the North will get a further 950,000 tonnes in return for "disabling" its atomic facilities. Negotiators sounded hopeful that a statement by host China today would set a date for the completion of the second phase.