Hill upbeat on progress in next round of N. Korea nuclear talks

WASHINGTON, Jan. 22 Kyodo

Top U.S. nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill said Monday he anticipates the next round of six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions will soon take place and can make headway toward denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula.

He sounded an upbeat note at Dulles International Airport outside Washington on returning from a four-nation tour for consultations on dismantling the North's nuclear weapons program. In Berlin, he held an unprecedented three days of talks with North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kyi Gwan.

''We did have substantial discussions in Berlin. I would say they were very useful discussions,'' Hill, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, told reporters.

Noting the latest bilateral discussions were better than similar ones held at the end of November, he said, ''I'm encouraged that we can have a good round of six-party talks'' once it is launched.

Hill said the next round of negotiations, involving North and South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia, will likely be convened the week of Feb. 5 at the latest. He said separate financial talks between Washington and Pyongyang could take place in January at any venue.

The last round of six-way talks ended without an agreement on nuclear disarmament or a date for further talks, as a result of the North's refusal to discuss the nuclear issue unless financial sanctions against it are lifted.

Pyongyang has demanded the financial curbs be removed before discussions on the scrapping of its nuclear weapons program. Washington says the two issues are unrelated.

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