The United States announced on Saturday it would take North Korea off its terrorism blacklist amid faltering denuclearisation talks in the final months of the Bush administration.

The decision was made after North Korea agreed to a series of verification measures of its nuclear facilities, said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack.

North Korea would resume disablement of its nuclear facilities, he said.

“North Korea remains subject to numerous sanctions resulting from its 2006 nuclear test, its proliferation activities, its human rights violations and its status as a communist state,” McCormack said. “The United States will continue to work toward the verifiable end of all North Korean nuclear programs and activities. We will not stop until this work is done.”