6-Party Talks to Be Held in Parallel With NK Nuke Shutdown

The U.S. State Department said Monday the next six-nation denuclearization talks are likely to reconvene within weeks, at about the same time that North Korea begins to shut down its nuclear facilities.

The stance reaffirms what South Korean Foreign Minister Song Min-soon said last week, that the six-party envoys could meet once they have the shutdown schedule, Yonhap news agency reported.

There are no specific plans for a meeting of the six-party members _ South and North Korea, the U.S., China, Russia and Japan, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters.

"There will be one, give or take, around the time of the beginning of the shutdown," he said.

"I think it's probably going to work in parallel. You don't want to necessarily have to wait for a meeting to begin the (shutdown) work."

Minister Song, after talks with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during his visit here last week, had indicated an early resumption of the six-nation forum aimed at denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula.

The previous assumption was that the forum would reconvene after North Korea completes closure of its reactor and auxiliary facilities, believed to be churning out nuclear weapons material.