Negotiators from six-nation talks in China have agreed steps to verify North Korea's nuclear disarmament.
Officials from China, the US, Russia, Japan and the two Koreas, agreed Pyongyang would finish disabling its main nuclear facility by October.
The other nations will complete deliveries of fuel and economic aid ahead of visits by verification teams.
The deal comes after South Korea's leader proposed reviving direct talks with the North in a major policy shift.
President Lee Myung-bak told parliament on Friday he was willing to carry out previous bilateral summit accords and provide the impoverished North with food aid.
Last month, North Korea demolished the cooling tower at its Yongbyon nuclear reactor, in a symbol of its commitment to talks on ending its nuclear programme.
The reactor was shut a year ago as part of a six-party agreement reached 16 months ago, when the North said it would scrap its nuclear ambitions in return for aid and diplomatic concessions.
The BBC's James Reynolds, in Beijing, says the latest agreement that could allow outside monitors into the country is an important issue for the US.
He says the Bush administration does not trust North Korea enough to take it as its word and will only be satisfied with proper independent verification.
BY-BBC NEWS
