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April 11, 2007
North Korea Nuclear Update
After all the money, all the effort and all the diplomatic gamesmanship, does anyone actually believe that the North Koreans are going to shutdown their reactor and suspend their nuclear program? (AP) I am hopeful, but highly skeptical.
If North Korea follows through with its promises, they would be the first moves Pyongyang has made to scale back its nuclear development since it kicked out international inspectors and in 2003 restarted its sole operating nuclear reactor.
But the hard-won agreement, reached four months after Pyongyang rattled the world by testing a nuclear device, was held up by the dispute over North Korean funds frozen in the Macau bank.
Authorities in the Chinese territory of Macau said Wednesday that North Korea can withdraw the money. Richardson said the Macau bank is expected to formally notify North Korea later Wednesday or Thursday that the regime can access its funds.
Acknowledging it might be difficult to meet the Saturday reactor shutdown deadline, Richardson called on the North to show goodwill and invite U.N. inspectors by then "to at least start the process of shutting it down."
Posted by Chip Spear at April 11, 2007 8:47 AM