DPRK stops disablement of Yongbyon nuclear facilities

www.chinaview.cn 2008-08-26 15:53:34  

    PYONGYANG, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) --

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) announced on Tuesday it has halted disabling nuclear facilities in Yongbyon, the official KCNA news agency reported.

    The DPRK will "consider soon a step to restore the nuclear facilities in Yongbyon to their original state," the KCNA quoted a Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying.

    The measure, a reaction to the impasse of the six-party nuclear talks, took effect on Aug. 14, he said.

    The United States and the DPRK can't agree on ways to verify the nuclear declaration that the DPRK submitted in June as part ofa six-nation disarmament deal.

    The United States has said it will wait until a verification mechanism is in place before it considers taking the DPRK off its terrorism blacklist.

    The DPRK spokesman rejected the verifying measures as short-noticed on-site inspection, saying that "the U.S. is gravely mistaken if it thinks it can make a house search in the DPRK as it pleases just as it did in Iraq."

U.S. insists on verification of DPRK nuclear program

www.chinaview.cn 2008-08-19 06:54:14  

    WASHINGTON, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) --

The United States insisted on Monday that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) must agree to verify its nuclear program before being delisted from terrorism blacklist.

    "What we require right now is that verification package from North Korea before we can go forward with the delisting," State Department spokesman Robert Wood told reporters.

    Wood made remarks after the DPRK denounced Washington for breaking its promise to remove the DPRK from its list of terrorism sponsors.

    The United States has breached the basic "action for action" principle of denuclearization, even though the DPRK has submitted the declaration of its nuclear inventory, said a commentary by the official KCNA news agency on Monday.

    This shows the United States is attempting to stonewall the six-party talks aimed at the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to impose pressure on the DPRK, the commentary said.

    The DPRK handed over its long-awaited nuclear declaration on June 26. Soon after the announcement, U.S. President George W. Bush said that his government intended to lift sanctions on the DPRK under the "Trading with the Enemy Act."

    While calling for full disclosure of nuclear programs and activities by Pyongyang, Bush also said that he would notify Congress of his intention to remove the DPRK from the list of state sponsors of terrorism in 45 days.     

Editor: Mu Xuequan

China urges parties to honor promises as DPRK halts denuclearisation

www.chinaview.cn 2008-08-26 18:42:58  

    BEIJING, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) --

China on Tuesday urged parties in the Korean Peninsula nuclear talks to honor their commitments and take joint actions even when difficulties arise.

    "Whether opportunity knocks or difficulty arises, we should keep in mind our goal of a denuclearized Korean Peninsula and a peaceful and stable northeast Asia, honor our commitments, enhancemutual trust and work closely to push the six-party talks," Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told a regular press briefing.

    Qin's comments came hours after the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) announced that it had stopped disabling its nuclear facilities in Yongbyon.

    The DPRK will "consider reconstructing the nuclear facilities, "the official KCNA news agency quoted a Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying.

    Accusing the United States of violating a six-nation disarmament deal, the DPRK attributed its move to the U.S. failure to remove it from a terrorism blacklist.

    Under a six-party denuclearization deal, the disablement work at the Yongbyon facility, about 90 kilometers from the capital Pyongyang, had been under way since November 2007.

    "The six-party talks are still faced with important opportunities," Qin said, citing the progress made in earlier six-party talks.

    "The chief negotiators' talks and foreign ministers' informal meeting in July produced important consensuses on how to move the nuclear talks ahead," Qin said.

    The spokesman said China has always kept close communication and consultation with the other parties in the talks in an effort to iron out differences and increase common ground.

    "We hope the communication and consultation can overcome all difficulties and complex factors and take the nuclear talks into anew phase," Qin said.

    The spokesman stressed that China will continue its constructive role in the talks, which started in 2003 and also include the Republic of Korea (ROK), Russia and Japan.

    "China will take an open attitude and play its part in any effort that will work for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and safeguard regional peace and stability," Qin said