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North Korea blows up nuke plant on TV


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"North Korea on Friday blew up the cooling tower of its atomic reactor in a dramatic symbol of its commitment to nuclear disarmament, one day after handing over details of its atomic programmes.

TV footage showed the 30-metre (99-foot) tower engulfed in a huge cloud of smoke as a landmark piece of the country's nuclear history collapsed in ruins.

"It was a significant and very important step," US State Department official Sung Kim told a reporter at the scene. "As I saw it, it was a complete demolition."

The cooling tower at Yongbyon, 96 kilometres (60 miles) north of Pyongyang, was the most visible symbol of the communist state's decades-old pursuit of nuclear weapons. It produced the plutonium for a programme which culminated in a nuclear test in October 2006. Yongbyon had already been largely disabled under a six-party disarmament pact.

The demolition came a day after the North handed over a long-awaited declaration of its nuclear activities, a move expected to end the stalemate in the six party negotiations on disarming the poor and isolated state.

In response, US President George W. Bush announced he was partially lifting some Trading With The Enemy Act sanctions ..."

by Park Chan-Kyong
shadowtrekker

17 responses // North Korea blows up nuke plant on TV

  • I wonder what brought apart such a sudden change in heart?
    PoisonTheMonkey
  • http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/06/27/northkorea....
    And it's done! The pics look pretty cool.
    Tori
  • http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=311848137026285...
    Here's some video. Can someone explain how this is safe? Is there no fallout from doing something like this?
    abbym0308
    2 responses to this
  • So aggressive diplomacy and offering incentives, like fuel and food aid, have resulted in major breakthroughs on North Korea's nuclear program?

    Bush is a Nazi-appeaser!
    Brendan_M
  • I don't think we're seeing much more than destruction of an old cooling tower. This doesn't mean the bombs are gone.
    crababble
    1 response to this
  • This doesnt mean anything they have been secretly doing shit for 30 years. So what if they blew up some old warehouses with some old junk they dont need anymore. They have the bombs still, why has this been so over looked.
    clayjj05
  • kim jong is a slippery c--nt , and i'm not buying this all too token-ish looking gesture .
    malathion
  • Wow, diplomacy worked! We just saved 500 billion dollars. Who'da thunk it.
    menmykoko
  • "And they pounded their weapons into plows...."
    jjmaster
  • While this is a complete token gesture and no more, lets hope the nuclear program plans handed over the day before prove to be more significant.
    fernandez_is_go
  • This is a lie.
    aaronklong
  • Kim Jong-Il is not as foolish as we make him out to be...this was a publicity stunt.
    TyMarshal
  • this is old...l.. boost it down CURRENT
    kewal91
  • Hoshyar Zebari, the Iraqi foreign minister, criticized the lawmakers for poisoning the public discussion before an agreement is concluded. He said U.S. officials had been flexible in the talks, as well as "frank and honest since the beginning."

    "This is an ongoing process," Zebari said. "There is no agreement yet. Proposals have been modified, they have been changed and altered. We don't have a final text yet for them to be judgmental."
    kewal91

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