North Korea assisted Syria on nukes, White House says

WASHINGTON — The White House says North Korea assisted Syria’s secret nuclear program and that the reactor bombed by Israel last September was not intended for peaceful purposes.

After seven months of silence, the administration said that after the reactor was damaged beyond repair, Syria tried to bury evidence of its existence. The U.S. says Syria “must come clean before the world” about its nuclear activities.

The White House called North Korea’s nuclear assistance to Syria a “dangerous manifestation” of that country’s nuclear weapons program and its proliferation activities. Still, the U.S. says it is moving forward with six-party talks to try to resolve the nuclear standoff with North Korea.