ID :
18934
Thu, 09/11/2008 - 15:47
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/18934
The shortlink copeid
U.S. welcomes N. Korea's commitment to six-party talks: White House
By Hwang Doo-hyong
WASHINGTON, Sept. 10 (Yonhap) -- The United States Wednesday welcomed the remarks by North Korea's ceremonial head of state to continue multilateral nuclear talks amid reports of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's failing health.
"We are looking at the comments today from the second in command as a
positive one," White House spokesperson Dana Perino told a daily press briefing. She said the United States will "continue to work to bring them into compliance."
Perino was responding to remarks by Kim Yong-nam, president of the Presidium of
the People's Supreme Assembly, that North Korea will "continue to try to
find a way" to break a deadlock over Washington's failure to "take us
off the list of state sponsors of terrorism."
The No. 2 man in the North Korean hierarchy complained in an interview with
Japan's Kyodo News Service that "the United States is lagging way
behind" and attributed it to the "domestic situation in the United
States," apparently referring to the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 4.
Perino said the U.S. will continue the six-party talks on ending North Korea's
nuclear weapons ambitions.
"Negotiations have ups and downs as Secretary Rice said, but we are going to
continue to work on it to make sure the Korean Peninsula remains nuclear
free," she said. "North Korea knows exactly what they need to do, which
is to establish a verification protocol so that we could then take the next step
that we promised to do, which is to take them off the terrorism list."
The six-party talks came to a standstill in recent months as North Korea stopped
disabling its main nuclear reactor, citing Washington's failure to remove the
North from the terrorism blacklist.
The U.S. wants the North to agree to a verification regime on its nuclear
programs, including an alleged uranium-based program and suspected nuclear
proliferation, before Pyongyang is taken off the blacklist.
Perino would not elaborate on Kim Jong-il's health, saying, "If and until
North Korea's ready to talk about the health of their leader, I'll just decline
to comment for now."
hdh@yna.co.kr
(END)
WASHINGTON, Sept. 10 (Yonhap) -- The United States Wednesday welcomed the remarks by North Korea's ceremonial head of state to continue multilateral nuclear talks amid reports of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's failing health.
"We are looking at the comments today from the second in command as a
positive one," White House spokesperson Dana Perino told a daily press briefing. She said the United States will "continue to work to bring them into compliance."
Perino was responding to remarks by Kim Yong-nam, president of the Presidium of
the People's Supreme Assembly, that North Korea will "continue to try to
find a way" to break a deadlock over Washington's failure to "take us
off the list of state sponsors of terrorism."
The No. 2 man in the North Korean hierarchy complained in an interview with
Japan's Kyodo News Service that "the United States is lagging way
behind" and attributed it to the "domestic situation in the United
States," apparently referring to the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 4.
Perino said the U.S. will continue the six-party talks on ending North Korea's
nuclear weapons ambitions.
"Negotiations have ups and downs as Secretary Rice said, but we are going to
continue to work on it to make sure the Korean Peninsula remains nuclear
free," she said. "North Korea knows exactly what they need to do, which
is to establish a verification protocol so that we could then take the next step
that we promised to do, which is to take them off the terrorism list."
The six-party talks came to a standstill in recent months as North Korea stopped
disabling its main nuclear reactor, citing Washington's failure to remove the
North from the terrorism blacklist.
The U.S. wants the North to agree to a verification regime on its nuclear
programs, including an alleged uranium-based program and suspected nuclear
proliferation, before Pyongyang is taken off the blacklist.
Perino would not elaborate on Kim Jong-il's health, saying, "If and until
North Korea's ready to talk about the health of their leader, I'll just decline
to comment for now."
hdh@yna.co.kr
(END)
