The U.S. State Department on Saturday welcomed North Korea's announcement that it will shut down its nuclear facilities.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack called the North's pledge to shut down its Yongbyon nuclear facilities a positive sign.

The department's deputy spokesman Tom Casey also said it was positive that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il talked about the swift shutdown of the Yongbyon reactor. Casey added that he would like to see the shutdown as soon as possible.

The remarks came after the North Korean Foreign Ministry said that Pyongyang will shut down the Yongbyon facility as soon as it starts receiving 50-thousand tons of heavy fuel oil under the February 13 six-party agreement.