US Says No Guarantees for North Korea
VOA News
22 Jul 2003, 17:09 UTC
The Bush administration says it is standing by its refusal to make any concessions to North Korea, and will not be "blackmailed" in the standoff over Pyongyang's nuclear development program.
A White House spokesman Tuesday denied a published report that the United States may offer North Korea guarantees of non-aggression if it abandons its nuclear ambitions. Such guarantees would fulfill a key demand by Pyongyang, set as a precondition for giving up its nuclear program.
The report, in the Washington Post, also said the United States has asked China to convey the proposal for talks to North Korea.
Earlier, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Chinese leaders told him they may organize talks with the United States and North Korea within weeks. He was speaking to reporters after a visit to Beijing.
The United States wants any talks to include South Korea, Japan, China and possibly Russia. North Korea says it wants to negotiate one-on-one with the Bush administration.
North Korea revealed late last year it planned to restart the nuclear weapons program it agreed to freeze in 1994 as part of an agreement with the United States.
Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.
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