U.N. inspectors arrived in North Korea on Saturday and headed straight to the communist country's nuclear reactor to monitor its shutdown, hours after a ship carrying oil aid promised in return for Pyongyang's pledge to disarm cruised into port, according to AP. Meanwhile, the top U.S. envoy to North Korea nuclear disarmament talks said he expects the reactor to be shuttered within days, though he sounded a note of caution about being too optimistic. After tortuous negotiations and delays _ during which the North argued its nuclear program was needed for self-defense _ the reclusive regime said earlier this month that once it received the oil shipment, it would consider halting its reactor. It would be the North's first step in nearly five years toward de-nuclearization. The 10-member team from the International Atomic Energy Agency arrived in the North Korean capital Saturday afternoon. Team chief Adel Tolba said they would stay in North Korea as long as needed to complete its work at the Yongbyon plutonium-producing reactor, about 120 kilometers (60 miles) northeast of Pyongyang.
