SEOUL -- Prime Minister Lee Yung-duk said Monday that South Korea is willing to help North Korea pay for a safer, modern nuclear reactor if the North clears up suspicions that it is developing nuclear weapons. Testifying before the National Assembly, Lee said the Communist North's decision to replace its outdated graphite-moderated reactor with a safer light-water reactor is "positive." The North's graphite-moderated reactor, developed by the Soviet Union, produces excessive amounts of plutonium, which can be used to make nuclear weapons. South Korea produces nearly half of its electricity at nuclear-power plants. It has nine reactors in operation, and is building seven more, including three developed with its own nuclear technology. Providing North Korea with a light-water reactor is expected to be a major issue at high-level U.S.-North Korea talks, scheduled to open in Geneva next week.
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