North Korea condemned US President George W. Bush’s speech calling on Pyongyang to halt its nuclear weapons programme as an ‘‘undisguised declaration of aggression’’ aimed at overthrowing the Communist state.The attack on Bush and his State of the Union address coincided with a report in the New York Times that said US spy satellites over N Korea had detected what appeared to be trucks moving a stockpile of nuclear fuel rods out of storage.Citing US officials, the newspaper said the movement of the 8,000 nuclear fuel rods is prompting fears that N Korea is preparing to produce about a half dozen nuclear weapons.White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, although declining to formally confirm the movement of the rods, said Washington backed plans to bring the issue of Pyongyang’s nuclear programme to the UN Security Council.Fleischer told reporters: ‘‘Any steps toward beginning reprocessing will be yet another provocative action by North Korea intended to intimidate and blackmail the international community.’’‘‘Any such step will have the effect of further isolating North Korea from the international community, which is united in seeking a peaceful resolution of the current situation,’’ he said. ‘‘We’ll continue to work with our friends and allies.’’Earlier on Friday, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog M Elbaradei said he would recommend that the UN Security Council, which has the power to approve economic sanctions, get involved in the stand-off with Pyongyang.The nuclear agency’s 35-nation board has yet to agree on a date for holding an emergency session on North Korea.UN sources said some states did not want to schedule a meeting until there was a tacit agreement that the Security Council would not push for economic sanctions against the nation.
