More oil heads to North Korea under nuclear deal

SEOUL, July 16 (Reuters) South Korea sent a second shipment of heavy fuel oil to the North today under a nuclear disarmament deal as international efforts to disable Pyongyang's atomic arms programme picked up speed.

North Korea said over the weekend that it had shut down its Yongbyon nuclear reactor -- source of its weapons-grade plutonium -- around the time it received the first shipment of oil on Saturday.

A team of international nuclear inspectors is in the North to verify the closure.

"The second shipment of heavy oil left for North Korea today," South Korean Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung told chief US nuclear envoy Christopher Hill today.

A Unification Ministry official said a tanker carrying 7,500 tonnes of oil left Ulsan in the South for the North Korean port of Nampo.

A provision of 50,000 tonnes of oil from the South is part of a Feburary 13 deal reached by North and South Korea, the United States, Japan, Russia and China on first suspending the operation of the North's nuclear facilities and then disabling them.

North Korea will receive additional 950,000 tonnes of oil and hold talks with the United States on improving its international standing in return for disabling all its nuclear facilities and making full disclosure of its nuclear programmes.

North Korea yeterday demanded the United States and Japan live up to their part of the deal by ending "hostile policies." The six-way talks are set to resume on Wednesday in Beijing to map out the next phase of ending Pyongyang's nuclear programme.

Reuters JK VP0702