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NORTH KOREA may have made the first move to scrap its controversial nuclear weapons programme, according to new satellite images. The pictures were taken on 20 July and analysed by 38 North, a Washington DC think tank.

The images seem to show the dismantling of a building where space launch vehicles are prepared and a test stand where liquid-fuel engines are developed for ballistic missiles and space launch vehicles. Both are integral to developing intercontinental ballistic missiles, says 38 North.

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But US intelligence leaks earlier in July suggested that clandestine work to upgrade Pyongyang’s nuclear capability continues at the officially acknowledged Yongbyon nuclear enrichment facility, at two or more secret sites and at other facilities developing mobile launch vehicles for ballistic missiles.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un “reaffirmed” his commitment to denuclearisation in a joint statement issued after his meeting with US President Donald Trump last month.

This article appeared in print under the headline “Is North Korea denuclearising?”