Korea rejects weapons inspectors

SEOUL, South Korea -- North Korea rejected a call by the U.N. nuclear monitoring agency for the communist country to abandon its nuclear weapons program and allow foreign inspections.\nNorth Korean Foreign Minister Paek Nam Sun said the Nov. 29 resolution was "extremely unilateral," the North Korean official news agency KCNA reported Wednesday.\nThe International Atomic Energy Agency's resolution urged North Korea to "give up any nuclear weapons programs expeditiously" and open "all relevant facilities to IAEA inspection and safeguards."\n"Paek clarified that the government cannot accept the ... resolution," KCNA said, citing a letter sent Monday from Paek to director-general IAEA Mohamed ElBaradei.\nThe White House denounced the decision and said it would work with other countries in the region to find a peaceful solution.\n"The rejection of the IAEA resolution to open its facilities to inspections is another disappointing example of North Korea's isolation that will only hurt the people of North Korea," White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said Wednesday.\n"We will continue to apply this pressure to North Korea by working in partnership with Russia and China ... as well as Japan and South Korea. The region has a peaceful interest in working together so North Korea comes into compliance with international norms," he said.\nIn Vienna, the IAEA expressed "deep concern" about North Korea's response.\nPaek's letter didn't respond to requests that North Korea "clarify reports of its having an undeclared uranium enrichment program," IAEA spokeswoman Melissa Fleming said Wednesday.\nNorth Korea also left unanswered the IAEA's request for high-level talks in Vienna on Oct. 18, Fleming said.\n"Dr. ElBaradei is reiterating his deep concern about the situation, his readiness to discuss all nuclear-related matters" with North Korea, Fleming said.\nThe IAEA previously had said it may take the matter to the U.N. Security Council if North Korea rejected its resolution.\nU.S. diplomats say North Korea revealed in October it had a nuclear weapons program in violation of a 1994 agreement with the United States. The accord called for the country to freeze and eventually dismantle its nuclear weapons program in exchange for international aid to build two power plants.\nThe United States, with backing from Japan, South Korea and the European Union, decided to punish North Korea by suspending free fuel oil shipments beginning in December.\nNorth Korea responded by declaring the 1994 agreement "collapsed."\nPaek blamed the crisis on "hostile" U.S. policies and accused the IAEA of treating North Korea unfairly.\n"I was disappointed at the IAEA board of governors still acting under the manipulation of the United States," Paek said.\nLittle is known about North Korea's nuclear program.\nThe IAEA has inspectors in North Korea but their activities are limited to monitoring an old nuclear complex north of Pyongyang and a reactor at another site.\nNorth Korea once showed IAEA inspectors about 100 grams of weapons-grade plutonium but U.S. officials believe the country has produced enough for several nuclear weapons.\nU.S. officials also say they have evidence that North Korea has been running a new weapons program, using enriched uranium.\nPyongyang accuses the United States of delaying construction of the power plants promised under the 1994 agreement.