BEIJING, Oct 3: North Korea has agreed to provide a complete list of its nuclear programmes and disable the facilities at its main Yongbyon reactor complex by December 31 under US supervision, according to a six-nation agreement released on Wednesday.

The deal -- the second phase of a long-running process aimed at ending the North’s atomic weapons drive -- came following talks involving the two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia, which wrapped up at the weekend.

The text was only finalised on Wednesday and unveiled by host China once the six nations gave the go-ahead. South Korea welcomed the deal, saying it paved the way for further steps on the path to disarmament.

North Korea “agreed to disable all its existing nuclear facilities” in accordance with an agreement reached by the six parties in February, according to a copy of the text obtained by AFP.

Pyongyang will disable the five-megawatt reactor and two other key facilities at Yongbyon, and provide a “complete and correct declaration of all its nuclear programmes” by December 31, the accord said.

“At the request of the other parties, the United States will lead disablement activities and provide the initial funding for those activities,” the accord said, adding that US experts would lead a team to the North within two weeks.

The agreement was released by Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei, Beijing’s chief negotiator to the six-party talks that began in 2003 and took on added urgency when the North tested its first nuclear weapon a year ago.

In return for the dismantling of its nuclear facilities, the five other parties will provide North Korea with another 900,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil or its equivalent in aid, the pact said.—AFP