Six-Party Talks Likely to Resume Next Week
By Na Jeong-ju
Staff Reporter
The six-party talks on ending North Korea's nuclear programs are expected to resume next week with China, the host of the negotiations, holding last-ditch discussions with the other countries to fix the date, officials in Seoul said Monday.
``The prospects for a new round of the talks are now brighter than ever as Pyongyang has reaffirmed its commitment to disclosing its nuclear activities,'' said a spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. ``China is currently talking with the United States and North Korea to set the timetable for the negotiations. It appears that the meeting will take place during the second week of July.''
The official, however, didn't rule out the possibility of a further delay of the negotiations, citing the summit talks among the G8 industrialized nations, scheduled for July 7-9 in Japan.
Quoting unidentified diplomatic sources, Japan's Kyodo News reported Sunday the six-party talks will resume in the latter half of the week starting July 7.
``The North's recent efforts to dismantle nuclear programs will be on the top of the agenda during the G-8 summit,'' the official said asking not to be named. ``The summit will be an opportunity for the participants to share evaluations of its nuclear programs and set the future course for the six-party negotiations.''
The U.S. had hoped to begin the talks this week, but the North opposed the proposal, citing ``technical problems,'' the official said without giving further details. The U.S. State Department said last week that the negotiations will restart soon.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Beijing Monday to meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao as part of her East Asian tour. Their meeting is expected to focus on pushing forward the six-nation talks.
Rice stopped at the earthquake-ravaged Sichuan Province earlier in the day, becoming the highest ranking American to visit the area since the quake occurred on May 12.
Expectations are running high for an early resumption of the nuclear talks with the North and the United States taking steps to begin the suspended dialogue.
The communist regime issued a long-overdue declaration on its nuclear facilities and activities, Thursday. Immediately, U.S. President George W. Bush pledged to remove it from the U.S. blacklist of terrorism sponsors and ease economic and diplomatic sanctions.
On Friday, Pyongyang blew up the cooling tower of the Yongbyon nuclear reactor in a bid to show its commitment to dismantling its nuclear facilities.