Washington - Just minutes after North Korea submitted its declaration on its nuclear programmes Thursday, the White House greeted the move as an "important step" and said North Korea would begin dismantling the Yongbyon reactor on Friday.
The information contained in the declaration handed to the government of China "will be essential to verifying that North Korea is ending all of its nuclear programs and activities," the White House said.
North Korea would "destroy the cooling tower of the Yongbyon reactor" on friday, the White House press secretary said in a statement. "North Korea has pledged to disable all its nuclear facilities." (dpa)