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Russia may not build a nuclear power plant in North Korea, as Pyongyong had earlier suggested, but rather set up the facility near its border with the Stalinist state, according to an official with the Russian nuclear energy ministry. Building the plant on Russian soil would prevent the disseminating of "advanced nuclear technology on the territory of a foreign country" and allow Russia's energy-strapped fareast to benefit from the facility, the RIA Novosti news agency quoted the official as saying Tuesday. A decision may be made when President Vladimir Putin's envoy to the Russian far east makes a visit to neghbouring North Korea later this month. A top North Korean official on a visit to Russia last month urged Moscow to build a nuclear power plant in the hermit state. Russia said it would study the proposal made by North Korean parliament speaker Choe Tae Bok. North Korea along with Iraq and Iran has been branded by US President George W. Bush an "axis of evil" seeking to develop weapons of mass destruction. Russia is building a nuclear plant at Bushehr in southwestern Iran despite objections from the United States, which fears Tehran is using the project to develop nuclear weapons. North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il made a lengthy official visit to Russia last year, his first known trip abroad as leader apart from communist China. Under a 1994 accord with the United States, North Korea froze the suspected development of atomic weapons in exchange for receiving two nuclear energy reactors which produce less weapons-grade plutonium. The 4.6-billion-dollar project was due to be completed by 2003, but delays have pushed back completion until at least 2008. All rights reserved. © 2002 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse. Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express 
China's Third Nuclear Power Station Whirrs Into Action
Beijing (AFP) April 19, 2002A nuclear power station worth nearly two billion dollars has been switched on in eastern China, becoming the country's third atomic plant, a report said Friday. |
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