WASHINGTON - PRESIDENT George W. Bush's administration could be about to provisionally remove North Korea from a terrorism blacklist, US media reported on Friday.

'Several sources said they had been told the delisting would take place as soon as today (Friday) based on North Korea's willingness to show cooperation on the verification plan,' The Washington Post said.

Fox News also reported that North Korea could be removed from the State Department's list of state sponsors of terrorism on Friday, and that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice could make the announcement.

'Officials told us that, in fact that decision and announcement by Secretary Rice could come as early as tomorrow,' the channel's Pentagon correspondent said late on Thursday.

US envoy to North Korea Christopher Hill returned this week from talks in Pyongyang but US officials have been unusually quiet about the outcome.

They had earlier said Mr Hill could offer the North a face-saving compromise in hopes of settling the verification dispute.

Under the plan, North Korea may first give China a plan that includes sampling of nuclear material, access to key atomic sites and other verification provisions sought by the United States.

Mr Bush would then provisionally remove the North from the terrorism list, after which China would announce North Korea's acceptance of the verification plan.

This would allow Pyongyang to assert that the delisting occurred before the verification plan was in place.

The White House said on Thursday it hoped to remove North Korea from the blacklist but would only do so if Pyongyang agreed to a verification protocol as part of denuclearisation efforts.

'If we can get a verification protocol that we are satisfied with, then we would be able to fulfill our side of the bargain,' spokesman Dana Perino told reporters.

White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe late on Thursday denied reports of an imminent delisting, saying: 'No decision has been made yet.' 'We will have a verification protocol before we de-list,' he added.

Under a six-nation deal reached in 2007, North Korea began disabling its nuclear weapons programs in exchange for energy and other aid.

But it has since balked at the plan accusing Washington of breaching the deal by failing to remove it from the terrorism blacklist.

In protest at the delay, the North is preparing to restart the Yongbyon complex which made the plutonium for nuclear bombs. Yongbyon was shut down in July last year under an accord involving the two Koreas, the US, Russia, China and Japan.

Pyongyang ramped up the pressure on Washington on Thursday by barring UN inspectors from its nuclear complex and warning Seoul of possible naval clashes along their disputed sea border.

Earlier this week, the North test-fired short-range missiles in the Yellow Sea.

South Korean media reports say it is readying 10 more missiles for a possible multiple test, in what analysts see as an attempt to strengthen its nuclear bargaining hand.

The State Department on Thursday urged Pyongyang 'to avoid any steps that increase tension on the peninsula'. -- AFP