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| N Korea starts disabling reactor | N Korea starts disabling reactor |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| American nuclear experts in North Korea have begun work to disable the country's key nuclear facility, the US state department says. | |
| Pyongyang agreed earlier this year to dismantle its nuclear weapons programme in return for diplomatic recognition and economic aid. | Pyongyang agreed earlier this year to dismantle its nuclear weapons programme in return for diplomatic recognition and economic aid. |
| North Korea shut down its reactor at Yongbyon in July. | North Korea shut down its reactor at Yongbyon in July. |
| "This is a positive first step in the process," said Tom Casey, a state department spokesman. | "This is a positive first step in the process," said Tom Casey, a state department spokesman. |
| Mr Casey did not go into details about what specific steps the team of experts was conducting. | |
| Working in two or three-week rotations over about two months, the US experts are expected to slowly disable the plant, which produces weapons-grade plutonium. | |
| The agreement on disabling came after many rounds of six-party negotiations in Beijing involving China, the US, Japan, Russia and the two Koreas. |