Beijing
11 July 2008
Negotiators seeking to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue aremaking progress on how to verify Pyongyang's own account of its nuclearactivities. Stephanie Ho reports from Beijing.
After two daysof negotiations in Beijing, the envoys from six countries have reachedwhat the Chinese side calls a "principled consensus" on verifying NorthKorea's declaration of its nuclear activities.
The declarationwas presented to China at the end of June, one day before Pyongyangdestroyed the cooling tower at its main Yongbyon nuclear facility.
Washington has called for the document to include a complete and accurate accounting of all of North Korea's activities.
Thereare many outstanding verification issues, according to Robert Gallucci,who was a top U.S. North Korea negotiator during the Clintonadministration.
Gallucci, who is now dean of GeorgetownUniversity's School of Foreign Service, says one priority is to findout whether North Korea has as much plutonium as it says it does.
"Theworld would be interested in being able to confirm or verify that theplutonium amounts are correct and begin to look at what circumstancesor arrangements there might be for disposition of separated plutonium,"he said.
He says another major verification question is thequestion of highly-enriched uranium, a program Pyongyang is accused ofpursuing in secret.
And, yet another issue involves questionsregarding North Korea's nuclear assistance to Syria. All this, hesays, touches on how the international community will monitorPyongyang's nuclear activity in the future.
"In other words, howcan we assure ourselves that there won't be more exports of nuclearmaterial or equipment, there will not be a secret uranium enrichmentfacility somewhere, or a secret reactor?" he asked. "What sort ofaccess will be granted, and to whom? Is the IAEA to be the executiveagency, the International Atomic Energy Agency, or is there to be somesort of ad hoc regime?"
In return for declaring and disablingits nuclear facilities, North Korea is to receive aid and diplomaticincentives. Among those incentives are U.S. moves to drop Pyongyangfrom the Trading with the Enemy Act and to remove it from the statesponsors of terror list.
The nations involved in the talks arethe United States, North Korea, China, South Korea, Japan and Russia. The current meeting came after a nine-month stalemate.
Chinesespokesman Qin Gang says the six parties are hoping to issue some sortof joint document at the end of this round of talks, which is expectedSaturday.