North Korea launched a short-range missile toward the Sea of Japan Tuesday for the third time in 45 days, NHK TV reported citing sources in the Japanese government.

The chief U.S. negotiator at talks on North Korea's nuclear programs says Pyongyang may already have its money back from a Macau bank and should shut down its nuclear facilities in a matter of weeks. As Daniel Schearf reports from Beijing, finding a bank to receive the formerly frozen North Korean funds has proven a big obstacle to restarting the nuclear talks.

The Interfax-China news agency reported that according North Korea planed to shut down its Yongbyon nuclear reactor in the second half of July.

Iran's Foreign Ministry announced that a new round of nuclear talks between Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani and European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana will be held "within the next few days."

South Korea's decision to resume food aid to North Korea is based on humanitarian concerns and is not linked to the standoff over neighbor's nuclear program, a top official said Thursday.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has wrapped up discussions in Vienna on Iran's nuclear program, with Iran's ambassador saying Tehran could further reduce cooperation with the agency if the Islamic Republic is slapped with new sanctions.

A senior U.S. diplomat warned Iran that it is facing the prospects of tough new sanctions "in the next week or two" unless it comes to the negotiating table on its nuclear program.

Radio Farda spoke with the United States' permanent representative to Vienna, Gregory Schulte, ahead of meetings of the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) governing board at which member states were expected to discuss Iran's disputed nuclear program.

Talks between the head of the United Nations nuclear agency and high-ranking Iranian officials to discuss Iran's nuclear program have been canceled.

The United States and Russia are reported to have arranged for banks to resolve a financial dispute over frozen North Korean funds. The issue has been a major sticking point holding up Pyongyang's movement on a nuclear disarmament agreement it signed on to in February.

The head of the UN's nuclear watchdog agency says the international dispute over Iran's nuclear program "needs to be defused."

Tehran has condemned a recent warning by the Group of Eight (G8) industrialized economies that Iran could face more sanctions over its controversial nuclear program.