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Korea Denies Secret Nuclear Pact with Syria

Posted Sep 18, 07 10:44 AM CDT in US,  Politics,  World 

(Newser) – North Korea and Syria each strongly denied a secret nuclear alliance today, after an Israeli raid in Syria, rumored to be aimed at a nuclear installation, raised suspicions. North Korea called the pact a fabrication designed to stall progress in its multi-national nuclear negotiations, while a state-run Syrian newspaper said it was a “flagrant lie.” But the AP says senior US officials confirm Korean presence in Syria.

Details about the Israeli raid, and the evidence it turned up, are extremely vague, says the Times, but American and Israeli officials confirmed that the Sept. 6 mission tracked North Korean cargo to what Israelis believed was a Syrian nuclear site. As the news emerged, China abruptly cancelled negotiations in Beijing that would have set a schedule for Korea’s disarmament.

Source Associated Press

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North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, center, poses for a photograph with the soldiers of Korean People's Army 821 unit, which is situated on the undisclosed forefront, North Korea, in this early April 2006...   (Associated Press)
South Korean Foreign Minister Song Min-soon arrives to meet Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee at the Foreign Ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Sept. 17, 2007. Song dismissed allegations...   (Associated Press)
This undated handout picture, released from the Korean Central...   (Getty Images)
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