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N. Korea Nuclear Complex Being Rebuilt, Reports Say

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The New York Times

Published: September 4, 2008

SEOUL, South Korea - North Korea has begun reassembling its main nuclear complex, its only known source of bomb-making plutonium, the South Korean government said Wednesday.

The North announced last week that it had stopped disabling its nuclear facilities and threatened to rebuild them, angry that it had not yet been removed from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism.

The United States maintains the North has not fulfilled the requirements for being removed from the list.

While North Korea has not yet threatened to expel American and international nuclear experts from its facilities in Yongbyon, the country's action threatens to sabotage five years of on-and-off talks between North Korea and the five powers - the United States, China, Russia, Japan and South Korea - seeking to end its nuclear weapons programs.

The North has often delayed and backtracked on commitments as a negotiating tactic, but its latest move complicates President Bush's hopes of cementing major gains in North Korean nuclear disarmament before he leaves office in January.

On Wednesday, Japan's public broadcaster NHK and the Kyodo News agency reported that North Korea had started reassembling its nuclear facilities on Tuesday.

The Bush administration said it was dispatching Christopher Hill, assistant Secretary of State for East Asia, to Beijing for talks on the issue.

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