N Korea hands over nuke dossier to China

The declaration is part of a series of measures aimed at getting North Korea to agree to nuclear disarmament in exchange for aid and security guarantees.

North Korea on Thursday handed over the much-anticipated declaration of its nuclear programmes to China, the Chinese foreign ministry said.

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The declaration was delivered by Choe Jin Su, the nation's ambassador to China, the ministry said in a statement posted on its website.

The declaration of Pyongyang's nuclear materials, facilities and programmes was not believed to include a list of its atomic weapons, which officials said would come in a later phase of the complex disarmament negotiations.

The Chinese statement came after an AFP reporter saw a car flying North Korea's flag and believed to be that of the North Korean ambassador drive into the foreign ministry.

The declaration is part of a series of measures aimed at getting North Korea, which during denuclearisation talks tested an atom bomb two years ago, to agree to nuclear disarmament in exchange for aid and security guarantees.

Wu Dawei, China's top negotiator on the North Korean nuclear issue, earlier Thursday told reporters the hand-over of the declaration would lead to the United States taking the North off its terrorist state blacklist.

The six nations have been in talks with North Korea since 2003, trying to persuade the isolated regime not to pursue nuclear weapons.