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NK agrees to suspend nuclear activities, allow inspectors

Feb. 29, 2012 - 23:50 By

WASHINGTON (AP) _ The United States said Wednesday North Korea has agreed to suspend nuclear activities and a moratorium on nuclear, and long-range missile tests in a breakthrough in negotiations with the secretive communist nation.




The announcement comes little more than two months after the death of longtime ruler Kim Jong Il, and suggests North Korea has met the key U.S. preconditions for restarting multi-nation disarmament-for-aid talks that the North withdrew from in 2009.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the North has agreed to alllow International Atomic Energy inspectors to verify and monitor the moratorium on uranium enrichment and confirm disablement of its nuclear reactor at Yongbyon.

Her statement says the US will meet with North Korea to finalize details for a proposed package of 240,000 metric tons of food aid.

North Korea issued a similar, although differently worded statement released simultaneously in Pyongyang.

An unidentified spokesman from North Korea's Foreign Ministry said in its statement carried by the state-run news agency that the North agreed to the nuclear moratoriums and the allowance of U.N. inspectors ``with a view to maintaining positive atmosphere'' for the U.S.-North Korea talks.

The announcement follows talks in Beijing last week between U.S. and North Korean negotiators, the first since negotiations were suspended after Kim's death in December from a heart attack.

Before his death, the U.S. and North Korea were close to such an agreement, which appears to meets U.S. preconditions for restarting the six-nation talks suspended three years ago.

``The United States still has profound concerns regarding North Korean behavior across a wide range of areas, but today's announcement reflects important, if limited, progress in addressing some of these,'' Nuland said.

She said the United States reaffirms that it does not have hostile intent toward North Korea and ``is prepared to take steps to improve our bilateral relationship in the spirit of mutual respect for sovereignty and equality.''

 

<한글기사>

北, UEP중단·핵-미사일 실험 유예' 합의



(워싱턴=연합뉴스) 미국과 북한은 지난 23∼24일 중국 베이징(北京)에서 진행한 3차 북미 고위급 회담 결과를 29일 오전 9시(현지시간.서울시간 오후 11시)에 동시 발표했다.

미국은 빅토리아 눌런드 대변인 명의의 성명을 통해 우라늄농축프로그램(UEP)의 중단과 핵·미사일 실험 유예(모라토리엄) 등 비핵화 사전조치와 대북 식량(영양)지원을 골자로 한 6개항의 합의내용을 공개했다.

성명은 "장거리 미사일 발사와 핵실험을 유예하고, 우라늄 농축활동을 포함한 영변에서의 핵활동을 유예하는데 북한이 동의했다"고 밝혔다.

북미회담 참석한 김계관 북한 외무성 제1부상.(자료사진)성명은 또 "북한은 영변의 우라늄농축활동의 유예와 5MW 원자로와 관련 시설의 해체를 검증하고 감시할 국제원자력기구(IAEA) 사찰단의 복귀에도 동의했다"고 밝혔다.

아울러 미국이 제안한 24만t의 영양지원 문제와 관련해 필요한 세부협의를 마무리하기 위해 조만간 북한측과 다시 회동하기로 합의했다고 밝혔다.

미국은 영양지원에는 강력한 모니터링이 수반된다고 강조했다.