Envoys fail to agree on N. Korea nuke verification

By Lee Chi-dong

BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Yonhap) -- Envoys to the six-way talks on the North Korean nuclear program failed Thursday to accomplish their main goal of documenting how to inspect Pyongyang's nuclear facilities.

"We were not able to get an agreed verification protocol," top U.S. negotiator
Christopher Hill told reporters as he headed back home after four days of talks
here with his counterparts from the two Koreas, China, Russia, and Japan.
He also said that no date for the next round of talks was set yet.
Although this week's round did not produce a deal, Hill said, the related parties
will keep trying to reach an agreement on the verification issue.
A South Korean delegate confirmed that there was no agreement on the verification
protocol.
"I don't think there will be any agreed document on that," he said on the
condition of anonymity.
China, which chairs the negotiations, was working on a chairman's statement to
summarize this week's talks, he said.