BBC News with Charles Carroll

The United States has welcomed an announcement by North Korea that it will halt its uranium enrichment programme and suspend nuclear and long-rangemissile tests. Washington described the measures as a positive first step towards the complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula. Steve Kingstone reports.

This announcement follows talks between American and North Korean officials in Beijing. In a written statement, Victoria Nuland of the US State Department said the North Koreans had agreed to suspend uranium enrichment at the Yongbyon nuclear plant and to allow UN inspectors to return to the site. In return, the US is offering 240,000 tonnes of food aid. It's come two months after the death of North Korea's long-standing leader Kim Jong-il. The question now is whether his son and successor Kim Jong-un will engage in broader talks about disarmament.