Looks like N. Korea's preparing to make good on the nuke deal they made with Bill Richardson

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North Korea signals atomic shut down

Associated Press
43 minutes ago

SEOUL, South Korea - Intelligence officials reported increased activity Tuesday around North Korea's main nuclear reactor, indicating the country may be preparing to uphold its agreement to shut down the plant.

{snip}

North Korea's Yongbyon reactor remained in operation Tuesday, but there was a high possibility that movement of cars and people at the site recorded in satellite photos could be linked to a shutdown, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported, citing an unnamed intelligence official. The Dong-a Ilbo newspaper carried a similar report.

An official at the National Intelligence Service, South Korea's main spy agency, told The Associated Press they were "following and analyzing some peculiar movements" around the reactor in North Korea, without elaborating. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, citing policy.

Yonhap news agency cited another unnamed intelligence official as saying that South Korea and the United States have been closely monitoring some movements since a month ago.

"The intensity of these activities has increased from about a week or two ago," the official was quoted as saying. "There are activities other than cars and people moving busily."

A North Korean decision to shut down the reactor would be its first move toward stopping its nuclear program since 2002, when the latest nuclear standoff began. The North is believed to have produced as many as a dozen atomic bombs since then, and conducted an underground nuclear test in October.

South Korean Foreign Minister Song Min-soon spoke by telephone Tuesday with his U.S. counterpart, Condoleezza Rice, and the two "strongly expressed expectations that North Korea will soon implement disarmament measures," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070417/ap_on_re_as/koreas_nuclear_84


US, S Korea hopeful on N Korea disarmament

16 minutes ago

SEOUL (AFP) - The United States and North Korea will start to shut down its nuclear weapons programme soon despite missing a weekend deadline.

The comments came as South Korea's intelligence service said US satellites have spotted unusual activity around North Korea's Yongbyon nuclear reactor, with local news reports saying Pyongyang may be preparing to turn it off.

Speaking by telephone, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Foreign Minister Song Min-Soon also reaffirmed that a banking dispute that has blocked progress for months can be settled, the foreign ministry here said.

"Both ministers expressed strong expectations for North Korea to take the nuclear disarmament measures under the February 13 agreement at an early date ..." a foreign ministry statement said.

They agreed "to watch the situation for a few more days," an official said.

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In Seoul, the Dong-A Ilbo newspaper said the US satellite images "captured unusual movements of people and vehicles around the cooling tower and parking lot in the Yongbyon nuclear facility."

It said Washington and Seoul believed the activities are likely to be part of operations to close down the reactor.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070417/pl_afp/nkoreanuclearweapons_070417134144



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[panader0]

1. Richardson and Pelosi are showing up the shrub administration

and sleazy rice especially. Diplomacy works!!!

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2. Brit hostages released, NK breakthrough . . .

I've never heard of a presidential candidate involved in something as significant as this. I think there's way too little acknowledgment of the authenticity of Bill Richardson's diplomatic skills and the absolutely urgent need for such a dedicated, skilled Executive in the WH.

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3. .