ID :
21718
Sun, 09/28/2008 - 12:08
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/21718
The shortlink copeid
U.S. nuclear envoy to visit Pyongyang this week: report By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, Sept. 28 (Yonhap) -- Chief U.S. nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill is planning another high-stakes visit to Pyongyang this week to deal with North Korea's revived nuclear brinkmanship, according to a news report Sunday.
The plan for the trip comes on the heels of the North's threats to reactivate a
reprocessing plant at its main nuclear complex in Yongbyon, which would make it
able to extract more weapons-grade material from spent fuel rods.
The trip is part of the Bush administration's last-ditch effort to salvage a
multilateral deal signed last year to end the North's nuclear program, the
Washington Post reported on its Web site, citing unidentified U.S. officials.
Hill visited the reclusive nation twice last year by way of Seoul for talks on
advancing the disarmament talks.
South Korean nuclear negotiators refused to confirm the media report.
"It is not a matter we can confirm," a senior Foreign Ministry official said on
condition of anonymity.
Asked about the possibility of Hill's next visit to Pyongyang, he pointed out
that "when it comes to a plan involving North Korea, as you know, it is hard to
say confidently before it is 100 percent done."
He added that the U.S. and North Korea are continuing consultations on the
dispute over verifying the North's recent declaration of its nuclear program
through the "New York channel," referring to the North Korean mission to the
United Nations. Pyongyang is calling for Washington to make good on its promise
to remove the communist nation from its list of terrorism-sponsoring nations. But
the U.S. says the North should first agree on a verification protocol.
Meanwhile, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told the Associated Press
that Hill will fly to Seoul on Monday, but refused to confirm whether the envoy
will travel to the North.
It is uncertain whether Hill's trip, if made, will produce a breakthrough in the
stalled denuclearization process, the South Korean official said.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)
The plan for the trip comes on the heels of the North's threats to reactivate a
reprocessing plant at its main nuclear complex in Yongbyon, which would make it
able to extract more weapons-grade material from spent fuel rods.
The trip is part of the Bush administration's last-ditch effort to salvage a
multilateral deal signed last year to end the North's nuclear program, the
Washington Post reported on its Web site, citing unidentified U.S. officials.
Hill visited the reclusive nation twice last year by way of Seoul for talks on
advancing the disarmament talks.
South Korean nuclear negotiators refused to confirm the media report.
"It is not a matter we can confirm," a senior Foreign Ministry official said on
condition of anonymity.
Asked about the possibility of Hill's next visit to Pyongyang, he pointed out
that "when it comes to a plan involving North Korea, as you know, it is hard to
say confidently before it is 100 percent done."
He added that the U.S. and North Korea are continuing consultations on the
dispute over verifying the North's recent declaration of its nuclear program
through the "New York channel," referring to the North Korean mission to the
United Nations. Pyongyang is calling for Washington to make good on its promise
to remove the communist nation from its list of terrorism-sponsoring nations. But
the U.S. says the North should first agree on a verification protocol.
Meanwhile, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told the Associated Press
that Hill will fly to Seoul on Monday, but refused to confirm whether the envoy
will travel to the North.
It is uncertain whether Hill's trip, if made, will produce a breakthrough in the
stalled denuclearization process, the South Korean official said.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)
