VIENNA - THE UN nuclear agency says North Korea plans to reinsert nuclear material into its Yongbyon reactor.
The move is a further sign that the North is making good on threats to restart the nuclear programme that allowed it to conduct a test explosion two years ago.
S. Korea 'very concerned' at IAEA expulsion
SEOUL - SOUTH Korea expressed its deep concern on Wednesday at North Korea's decision to bar UN inspectors from its Yongbyon plant and to reintroduce nuclear material.
'The government is very concerned about North Korea's continued move to restore nuclear facilities in Yongbyon,' the foreign ministry said in a statement.
White House: N.Korea nuclear actions 'disappointing'
NEW YORK - THE White House on Wednesday called North Korea's move to expel UN monitors from its
nuclear plant and plans to restart it 'very disappointing' and urged Pyongyang to reconsider its actions.
'The North Korean actions are very disappointing and run counter to the expectations of the members of the six-party talks and the international community,' White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said.
Mr Mohamed El Baradei, the chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also told the IAEA board on Wednesday that IAEA inspectors removed agency seals from the reactor earlier in the day, according to an IAEA statement.
He said the North said it would reintroduce the nuclear material within a week.
North Korea has also told the UN atomic watchdog that IAEA inspectors will no longer have access to its nuclear reprocessing plant at Yongbyon, an agency spokeswoman said on Wednesday.
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea had told the IAEA 'that from here on the IAEA inspectors will have no further access to the reprocessing plant,' agency spokeswoman Melissa Fleming told reporters here. -- AP, AFP
