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North Korea signs the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
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The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) demands that inspectors be given access to two nuclear waste storage sites. In response, North Korea threatens to quit the NPT but eventually opts to continue participating in the treaty.
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North Korea and the United States sign an agreement. North Korea pledges to freeze and eventually dismantle its old, graphite-moderated nuclear reactors in exchange for international aid to build two new light-water nuclear reactors.
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United States President George W. Bush labels North Korea, Iran and Iraq an "axis of evil" in his State of the Union address. "By seeking weapons of mass destruction, these regimes pose a grave and growing danger," he says.
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The Bush Administration reveals that North Korea has admitted operating a secret nuclear weapons program in violation of the 1994 agreement.
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North Korea withdraws from the NPT.
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The United States confirms North Korea has reactivated a five-megawatt nuclear reactor at its Yongbyon facility, capable of producing plutonium for weapons.
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Declares it has nuclear weapons.
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North Korea tentatively agrees to give up its entire nuclear program, including weapons. In exchange, the United States, China, Japan, Russia and South Korea say they will provide energy assistance to North Korea, as well as promote economic cooperation.
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After North Korea test fires long range missiles, the UN Security Council passes a resolution demanding that North Korea suspend the program.
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North Korea claims to have successfully tested its first nuclear weapon. The test prompts the UN Security Council to impose a broad array of sanctions.
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North Korea agrees to close its main nuclear reactor in exchange for an aid package worth $400 million
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At six-party talks in Beijing, North Korea signs an agreement stating it will begin disabling its nuclear weapons facilities.
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North Korea misses the deadline to disable its weapons facilities.
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North Korea destroys a water cooling tower at the Yongbyon nuclear facility.
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Six-party talks are held in Beijing. The talks break down over North Korea's refusal to allow international inspectors unfettered access to suspected nuclear sites.
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North Korea announces it has conducted its second nuclear test.
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The UN Security Council condemns the nuclear test and imposes new sanctions.
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A Stanford University professor publishes a report that North Korea has a new nuclear enrichment facility.
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US officials meet with a North Korean delegation in Geneva, Switzerland, in an effort to restart the six-party nuclear arms talks that broke down in 2008.
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