The United States says North Korea's Yongbyon plant is not yet operational, but that the North is preparing to operate the reactor.

U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told a regular news briefing Friday that Pyongyang is preparing to reverse the reactor shutdown and is "getting closer to the point where they are operationalizing Yongbyon again."

The spokesman added that Washington is urging Pyongyang not to get to that point.

McCormack also stressed there is no chance for the North to get a better deal next year from a new administration in the U.S.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will reportedly meet with her Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi next week to discuss the North Korean nuclear issue on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.