In an interview in the latest edition of the German magazine Der Spiegel, to be released Monday, ElBaradei said he was most concerned about the North Korean nuclear issue, and he pressed Kim Jong-il to re-allow IAEA inspection teams to enter North Korea.

He said it seemed North Korea believes nuclear weapons are its only negotiating card, and he said that in order to resolve the issue, he was prepared to go to North Korea himself as a special gesture.

As for North Korea’s nuclear declaration, the IAEA head said he had no specific information on whether North Korea possessed nuclear weapons or not. He did claim, however, that North Korea has enough plutonium to produce 6~8 nuclear weapons, along with the know-how to put them together.

(englishnews@chosun.com )