UNITED NATIONS, May 24 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday welcomed the demolition of a nuclear test site by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Guterres hopes that the "confidence-building measure will contribute to ongoing efforts towards sustainable peace and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

Earlier on the day, the DPRK confirmed the demolition of its nuclear test site at Punggye-ri, saying that all the tunnels have been collapsed by explosions and their entrances completely closed, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The three tunnels of the test site were blown up by 16:00 local time (0700 GMT), according to Xinhua reporters on site.

Pyongyang invited journalists from several major countries including Russia and the United States to witness the site's dismantlement.