Talks due to start this week on the dismantling of North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme have been postponed, it was announced today. The six-party talks between Russia, China, the US, Japan and North and South Korea were aimed at setting a timetable for final decommissioning of the state’s nuclear capabilities. They were arranged after experts from the US, China and Russia visited North Korea’s nuclear facilities and reportedly reached a deal on how to dismantle them.