US envoy visits North Korea

The top US envoy on North Korea made a rare visit to the communist country today to inspect work to disable its nuclear complex so that Pyongyang will no longer be able to produce atomic bombs.

North Korea began disabling its plutonium-producing reactor and other related facilities last month under the guidance of US experts, a milestone in international diplomacy aimed at persuading Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear ambitions in return for economic aid and other benefits.

US Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill is the highest-level US official to check on the disablement at the North’s nuclear plant in Yongbyon, north of Pyongyang.

North Korea had promised to complete the disabling measures by the end of the year.