North says new talks may be in jeopardy

BEIJING ― In apparent disobedience to instructions from China and indignation at the disclosure by the United States of North Korea’s renewed nuclear threat, the North released a statement through its Central News Agency yesterday that said the next round of nuclear talks could be in jeopardy. The statement was issued from Pyeongyang just as six-party talks on the North Korean nuclear crisis were concluding in Beijing. China, the host of the three-day talks, had insisted on strict confidentiality on the details of the discussions, which the North in effect broke. The release also followed reports from Washington that the North on Thursday threatened to test its nuclear weapons if the United States continued to refuse to enter into a nonaggression treaty. North Korea also released a summary of the opening statements made by the six countries at the talks. Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Yong-il had proposed four steps in his opening statement to end the standoff on the nuclear issue. The statement predicated any intention to dissolve its nuclear program on the U.S. move to abandon its policy of hostility toward the North, Mr. Kim said. The statement, as released by the state-run media, did not specifically refer to the possession of nuclear weapons or any imminent testing of such weapons. The news agency also quoted the chief U.S. negotiator, Assistant Secretary of State James Kelly, as saying North Korea must irreversibly and completely dismantle its nuclear program before there can be any discussion of security guarantees or political or economic assistance. The United States will not pursue bilateral talks with the North to resolve the nuclear issue, Mr. Kelly was quoted as saying, and a dismantling of the nuclear program must also precede bilateral discussions on the missile program, trading of counterfeit currency, terrorism and human rights in North Korea. Mr. Kelly flatly ruled out a nonaggression treaty with the North as “unnecessary and inappropriate,” the agency said. Reached by telephone, a member of the U.S. delegation declined to comment on the report. “We have nothing to share,” she said. By Kim Young-sae Staff Writer