ID :
205455
Tue, 09/06/2011 - 10:16
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/205455
The shortlink copeid
(LEAD) S. Korea's nuclear envoy to visit U.S. this week
(ATTN: UPDATES with attribution, fresh quote in first five paras; TRIMS)
SEOUL, Sept. 6 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's chief nuclear envoy will travel to the United States this week, Seoul's foreign ministry said Tuesday, after North Korea reportedly promised to impose a moratorium on nuclear testing if the six-party talks resume.
Wi Sung-lac plans to meet with William Burns, deputy U.S. secretary of state, and Stephen Bosworth, Washington's special envoy on Pyongyang, during his three-day visit beginning Wednesday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Cho Byung-jae said.
Wi is also scheduled to meet Kurt Campbell, assistant U.S. secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, Cho said.
"During his visit to the U.S., Wi and the U.S. officials will jointly assess the ongoing North Korean nuclear issue and consult on how to move forward with inter-Korean and other forms of bilateral talks on denuclearization," Cho said.
Earlier in the day, a senior ministry official said that during the visit Wi will also hold consultations with Clifford Hart, who is expected to be named the new chief U.S. envoy to the six-way talks. But the spokesman declined to confirm a meeting between Wi and Hart.
The six-party talks on ending the North's nuclear weapons programs, involving the two Koreas, the U.S., China, Russia and Japan, have been dormant since late 2008.
Since late July, however, South Korea and the U.S. have been engaged in preliminary talks with North Korea to gauge the possibility of resuming the multilateral forum.
Wi's trip to the U.S. comes as North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, during a rare summit with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Aug. 24, reportedly pledged to consider issuing a moratorium on nuclear testing and missile launches if the broader negotiations resume.
South Korea and the U.S. gave a cool response to the North's latest gesture as they demand Pyongyang announce such a moratorium before, not after, the six-party negotiations begin.
SEOUL, Sept. 6 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's chief nuclear envoy will travel to the United States this week, Seoul's foreign ministry said Tuesday, after North Korea reportedly promised to impose a moratorium on nuclear testing if the six-party talks resume.
Wi Sung-lac plans to meet with William Burns, deputy U.S. secretary of state, and Stephen Bosworth, Washington's special envoy on Pyongyang, during his three-day visit beginning Wednesday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Cho Byung-jae said.
Wi is also scheduled to meet Kurt Campbell, assistant U.S. secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, Cho said.
"During his visit to the U.S., Wi and the U.S. officials will jointly assess the ongoing North Korean nuclear issue and consult on how to move forward with inter-Korean and other forms of bilateral talks on denuclearization," Cho said.
Earlier in the day, a senior ministry official said that during the visit Wi will also hold consultations with Clifford Hart, who is expected to be named the new chief U.S. envoy to the six-way talks. But the spokesman declined to confirm a meeting between Wi and Hart.
The six-party talks on ending the North's nuclear weapons programs, involving the two Koreas, the U.S., China, Russia and Japan, have been dormant since late 2008.
Since late July, however, South Korea and the U.S. have been engaged in preliminary talks with North Korea to gauge the possibility of resuming the multilateral forum.
Wi's trip to the U.S. comes as North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, during a rare summit with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Aug. 24, reportedly pledged to consider issuing a moratorium on nuclear testing and missile launches if the broader negotiations resume.
South Korea and the U.S. gave a cool response to the North's latest gesture as they demand Pyongyang announce such a moratorium before, not after, the six-party negotiations begin.
