Yahoo News |
CBS News |
BBC News |
14.03.2008 01:59 - category: World News : BBC News
- Source: BBC NewsTop negotiators from the US and North Korea are holding talks in a bid to break a deadlock on a deal aimed at ending Pyongyang's nuclear programme.
Christopher Hill is meeting counterpart Kim Kye-gwan at the US mission in the Swiss city of Geneva. North Korea agreed last year to end its nuclear activities in return for economic aid. But progress on the deal stalled after Pyongyang missed a year-end deadline to fully disclose its nuclear programmes. The two men met in Beijing last month but failed to achieve a breakthrough. Enriched uranium Since agreeing to the disarmament deal in February 2007, North Korea has closed its Yongbyon nuclear reactor. But, says the US, it did not produce a complete declaration of its nuclear activities by the end of 2007, as promised. One issue is whether or not Pyongyang has a secret programme to enrich uranium for weapons purposes. Another is whether it has been involved in transferring nuclear technology to other countries. North Korea denies both allegations and says it has already given Washington full details of its nuclear programmes. It accuses the US and other parties to the deal - South Korea, China, Russia and Japan - of failing to provide agreed aid. It also wants the US to remove it from the list of state sponsors of terrorism. Talks were expected to last a day but could extend into Friday if necessary, a US State Department spokesman said.www.free-voipservice.net
Add comment