The New York Philharmonic has given an historic concert in the North Korean capital Pyongyang. It was the first visit by a major US musical group to North Korea.

The leaders of North and South Korea are to hold a rare summit at the end of this month. Reports said North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun will meet August 28-30 in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang.

Experts from six nations gathered near the border between North and South Korea Tuesday to discuss details for aid to Pyongyang in return for ending its nuclear programs, Japan's Kyodo agency reported.

Another group of inspectors from UN's nuclear watchdog has arrived in North Korea to observe the second phase of Pyongyang's obligation to wrap up its controversial nuclear program, the Xinhua news agency reported Saturday.

South Korea is expected to complete a fuel oil shipment to the North on Sunday as part of a six-nation deal to encourage Pyongyang's nuclear disarmament, a Seoul-based news agency said.

Experts from the UN nuclear watchdog will install monitoring equipment at five North Korean nuclear facilities in the next few weeks as part of an international effort to fold Pyongyang's nuclear program, a Russian diplomat said.

The chief U.S. nuclear envoy expressed optimism after a day of meetings with his North Korean counterpart Tuesday, saying no new obstacles emerged to progress on disarmament following Pyongyang's shutdown of its sole operating reactor.

United Nations nuclear inspectors, after years of being banned from North Korea, have arrived in the North to verify the shutdown of Pyongyang's main nuclear facility. The shutdown appears to be imminent. The inspectors' visit coincides with the arrival in the North of a preliminary shipment of fuel oil from South Korea, and comes just days before six-nation negotiations on Pyongyang's overall nuclear programs are due to resume.

Pyongyang received Saturday the first 6,200 metric tons of fuel oil from Seoul as part of an international denuclearization deal, the Xinhua news agency said referring to a source in the South Korean Unification Ministry.

The North Korean government has issued a positive assessment of a senior U.S. envoy's visit to the capital, Pyongyang. United Nations nuclear inspectors are expected to arrive in North Korea on Tuesday to plan for the imminent shutdown of the North's main nuclear reactor, a crucial first step toward the goal of Pyongyang' full nuclear disarmament.

U.S. chief nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill says he had "good talks" with North Korean officials in Pyongyang and believes they are prepared to promptly shut down the country's Yongbyon nuclear reactor.

The senior U.S. diplomat in charge of negotiating an end to North Korea's nuclear weapons programs is in the North Korean capital. The surprise visit comes just days before United Nations nuclear inspectors are expected in the North to plan the shutdown of the country's main reactor.