ID :
211464
Thu, 10/06/2011 - 06:38
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/211464
The shortlink copeid
S. Korea's new nuclear envoy heads to U.S. for N. Korea talks
(ATTN: UPDATES with departure, quote in first four paras; ADDS photo; AMENDS headline)
SEOUL (Yonhap) - South Korea's new chief envoy to the stalled six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons programs left for the United States Thursday, amid cautious diplomatic jostling to revive the multilateral forum.
Speaking to Yonhap News Agency before departing for Washington, Lim Sung-nam said that he "will make efforts to induce North Korea to denuclearize" by "closely coordinating with the U.S."
Lim, a former deputy chief envoy to the six-party talks between 2007 and 2008, was appointed the lead delegate on Wednesday as part of a regular personnel reshuffle at the foreign ministry. His predecessor Wi Sung-lac was named as South Korea's ambassador to Russia.
Foreign ministry officials said Lim's three-day visit to the U.S. is also aimed at preparing for next week's summit meeting between South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and U.S. President Barack Obama.
Lim, 53, will also meet with officials at the U.S. State Department and the National Security Council to brief them on the results of last month's second round of inter-Korean denuclearization talks held in Beijing, the ministry said in a press release.
The sides are expected to discuss the next steps in the dialogue with North Korea and preconditions Seoul and Washington insist be met by Pyongyang before the resumption of the stalled six-party talks, the release said.
The U.S. is likely to hold a second round of denuclearization talks with North Korea soon after the Seoul-Washington summit, a senior government official recently told reporters on condition of anonymity.
The rounds of bilateral talks between the Koreas since July are hoped to contribute to reviving the six-party negotiations, which offer economic and political aid to North Korea in exchange for its nuclear disarmament. The forum, also involving China, Japan and Russia, was last held in late 2008.
SEOUL (Yonhap) - South Korea's new chief envoy to the stalled six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons programs left for the United States Thursday, amid cautious diplomatic jostling to revive the multilateral forum.
Speaking to Yonhap News Agency before departing for Washington, Lim Sung-nam said that he "will make efforts to induce North Korea to denuclearize" by "closely coordinating with the U.S."
Lim, a former deputy chief envoy to the six-party talks between 2007 and 2008, was appointed the lead delegate on Wednesday as part of a regular personnel reshuffle at the foreign ministry. His predecessor Wi Sung-lac was named as South Korea's ambassador to Russia.
Foreign ministry officials said Lim's three-day visit to the U.S. is also aimed at preparing for next week's summit meeting between South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and U.S. President Barack Obama.
Lim, 53, will also meet with officials at the U.S. State Department and the National Security Council to brief them on the results of last month's second round of inter-Korean denuclearization talks held in Beijing, the ministry said in a press release.
The sides are expected to discuss the next steps in the dialogue with North Korea and preconditions Seoul and Washington insist be met by Pyongyang before the resumption of the stalled six-party talks, the release said.
The U.S. is likely to hold a second round of denuclearization talks with North Korea soon after the Seoul-Washington summit, a senior government official recently told reporters on condition of anonymity.
The rounds of bilateral talks between the Koreas since July are hoped to contribute to reviving the six-party negotiations, which offer economic and political aid to North Korea in exchange for its nuclear disarmament. The forum, also involving China, Japan and Russia, was last held in late 2008.
