U.S., North Korea agree on atomic verification measures

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and North Korea have agreed experts will have access to all "declared" nuclear facilities and the United Nations atomic agency will play an important role in verifying Pyongyang's nuclear activities, a senior U.S. official said on Saturday.

U.S. and North Korean negotiators agreed last week on the verification measures, which had been delayed for months, said the official, who spoke on condition he not be named.

These were needed before Pyongyang could come off a terrorism blacklist which the State Department is expected to announce shortly.

U.S. envoy Chris Hill visited Pyongyang last week and helped draw up the measures, which included agreement that the International Atomic Energy Agency would have an "important consultative and support role in verification," according to a State Department fact sheet due to be released shortly.

"(Verification measures included) agreement that experts will have access to all declared facilities, and, based on mutual consent, to undeclared sites," the document said.

There was also agreement on the use of various scientific procedures for verification, including sampling and forensic activities, it added.

All the measures in a verification mechanism would apply to the North's plutonium-based program and any uranium enrichment and proliferation activities, said the document.

U.S. and North Korean negotiators also agreed that experts from the six nations involved in denuclearization talks with Pyongyang could take part in verification activities.

(Reporting by Sue Pleming, editing by Chris Wilson)