US Says North Korea Continues Steps to Restart Nuclear Program
By VOA News
03 October 2008
The U.S. State Department says North Korea has not stopped efforts to restart its nuclear program despite the latest diplomatic effort to revive a deal on dismantling the country's nuclear program.
State Department spokesman Robert Wood Friday said Pyongyang is continuing some steps to reverse disablement of its nuclear facility at Yongbyon. Wood said the latest confirmation of the North's ongoing nuclear activity was received late Thursday during U.S. envoy Christopher Hill's visit to Pyongyang.
After returning from the three-day visit, Hill said he had conducted "lengthy" and "substantive" talks with his North Korean counterpart, Kim Kye Kwan. But he declined to say if any real progress had been made on the issue of nuclear inspection procedures.
The communist state began reversing its nuclear disarmament after Washington declined to remove it from its list of countries sponsoring terrorism.
The United States wants an international verification of North Korea's compliance with a six-nation disarmament deal.
North Korea says verification is not part of the current stage of the agreement.
Last year, North Korea agreed to end its nuclear program in return for energy aid and diplomatic benefits from the United States, South Korea, Japan, Russia and China. However, in recent weeks, Pyongyang reversed the process of dismantling its nuclear facilities after a dispute over verification procedures.
Hill Friday briefed his South Korean and Japanese counterparts, Kim Sook and Akitaka Saiki, in the six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear program and is heading to China on Saturday.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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