North Korea's Kim open to nuclear site inspection: report

WASHINGTON:  North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is willing to allow inspectors into the reclusive country’s main nuclear complex in Yongbyon, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported on Tuesday, citing a senior diplomatic source.

“I understand that Chairman Kim told (South Korean) President Moon (Jae-in) during their summit in September that if the U.S. took corresponding steps he would not only be willing to shut down the Yongbyon nuclear facilities but also allow verification,” Yonhap quoted the source as saying.

The source said Moon passed the message on to U.S. President Donald Trump when the two met during the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September.

Kim had earlier expressed openness to shutting down the site if Washington took “corresponding” measures, but no offer to allow inspectors in to verify had been reported.

The United States has stressed the importance of verification as it negotiates with the North about the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.