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N Korea nuclear talks stalled
21/03/2007 11:18 - (SA)
Beijing - North Korean nuclear disarmament talks stalled again on Wednesday as Pyongyang refused to come to the negotiating table until $25m in frozen funds were back in its coffers.
Planned meetings of the chief envoys to the six-nation talks on Wednesday morning did not take place, officials involved in the negotiations said, as North Korea insisted it would not talk until the money was safely returned.
"It is difficult for me at the moment to predict when the plenary meeting among the chief delegates will open today," chief South Korean envoy Chun Yung-Woo told reporters.
"It depends on North Korea... If North Korea keeps insisting that it should not take part in the discussions at all before the transfer of the money, it will be difficult to have the plenary talks."
Authorities in Macau, where the money has been frozen since 2005 due to US accusations of North Korean money laundering and counterfeiting, said this week it would be released to a North Korean bank account.
But no one involved in the process has said when this will take place.
North Korea has repeatedly said it will not begin implementing a six-nation disarmament accord signed on February 13 until the money is safely back in its hands.
The United States announced on Monday, at the start of the latest round of six-nation talks, that it had struck a deal with North Korea to end the dispute and the frozen money would be returned.
The United States insisted that it had received assurances from North Korea that the money would be used only for "humanitarian and educational purposes," however officials from Pyongyang have not said where the funds will go.
Despite the hold-up in the talks, which have been plagued by delays and arguments since beginning in 2003, parties remained confident that the key initial steps of the February 13 accord could be implemented on schedule.
North Korea, which conducted its first atomic test in October last year, agreed in the deal to close its main nuclear reactor at Yongbyon by mid-April and allow International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors back into the country.
In return, North Korea would initially receive 50 000 tonnes of heavy fuel for energy use.
Reporting "good progress" at the talks, China's foreign ministry on Tuesday afternoon said the North had indicated it would abide by the accord.
"We found that North Korea is ready to shut down and seal the facility in Yongbyon and accept the monitoring and supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency," ministry spokesperson Liu Jianchao told reporters.
The six-nation talks involve China, the two Koreas, the United States, Japan and Russia.
- AFP
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