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, I
would 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 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 to
his 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."
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 News Agency December 5, 2007)
