Chinese, ROK nuclear chiefs meet in Beijing

BEIJING—Chinese Vice Foreign Minister and chief delegate to the six-party talks Wu Dawei met here Thursday with his counterpart from the Republic of Korea (ROK) Chun Young-woo.
Both sides exchanged views on the current six-party talks process and the following work plan, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told a regular press conference here Thursday. The meeting of the working group on economic and energy cooperation concluded in Beijing on Wednesday. Qin said all parties discussed the economic and energy assistance plan for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and many important consensus points have been agreed.
“With joint efforts from all sides, positive outcomes have emerged in the six-party talks process, and the disablement of the Yongbyon nuclear facilities is going smoothly,” Qin said. “All parties are keeping close contact in pushing forward the process and we also expect continuous efforts to implement the agreement in an all-round way,” he added. U.S. chief nuclear envoy Christopher Hill told Xinhua Wednesday that he was satisfied with the results of good talks with DPRK Foreign Ministry officials, when he was about to leave Pyongyang for Beijing.
“We had a good today’s talks and had a full tour of Yongbyon, Iwould say the disablement activities are going well on schedule,” said Hill, also U.S. assistant secretary of state, after he concluded a three-day visit to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).
“In Pyongyang, I have an opportunity to...have further discussion with my counterpart vice Minister Kim Gue Guam. We discussed the elements of package for Dec. 31 and accessed the factors of process that have been made. We have to keep working because we have more to do to meet our deadlines,” he added. Both sides also discussed next steps and “factors needed to try to keep the pace and get to the end of this,” Hill said.
He also added that he is going to Beijing right now and talk tohis Chinese counterpart Wu Dawei... and later report to U.S. State Secretary Condoleezza Rice in Washington. Regarding the alleged uranium enrichment program and when the DPRK will make a declaration of dismantling its nuclear program, Hill said “I think the DPRK is working very hard for the declaration and we have some discussions about that...so I’m assured they will be prepared to meet the deadline.”
“We have to see what the DPRK does, but it has to give a full declaration and it has to be a complete declaration,” said Hill. “We have discussed the next step of process,” said Li Geun, director of DPRK Foreign Ministry’s America Bureau, adding that “it’s a good discussion.” According to a six-party talks joint document released in Beijing on Oct. 3, the DPRK agreed to disable all the existing nuclear facilities and provide a complete and correct declaration of all its nuclear programs by the end of this year. The document said the disablement of the five-megawatt Experimental Reactor, the Reprocessing Plant (Radiochemical Laboratory) and the Nuclear Fuel Rod Fabrication Facility in Yongbyon would be completed by Dec. 31.—Xinhua