U.S. On N. Korea: No Concessions

An American envoy said Monday that Washington won't offer concessions to North Korea before next week's six-nation nuclear talks, insisting that Pyongyang must agree to dismantle its weapons programs.

Undersecretary of State John Bolton, who was in Beijing for meetings with Chinese officials, urged North Korea to follow the example of Libya and renounce nuclear weapons.

North Korea says it will freeze its atomic programs in exchange for oil shipments and security guarantees from the United States. The Bush administration insists North Korea begin dismantling the programs before it can receive any concessions.

"I don't think our position has changed from what it's been for quite some time," Bolton told reporters. "The issue really is whether North Korea is prepared to make the commitment for the complete verifiable and irreversible dismantlement of its programs."

Bolton added: "I think the Libya case shows how one goes about giving up weapons of mass destruction."

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi in November announced that his government was renouncing nuclear weapons and he opened its weapons laboratories to international inspectors.

Bolton met Monday with China's top diplomat on the North Korean issue, Wang Yi, and was to meet Tuesday with Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing.

He downplayed any differences between Beijing and Washington on how to deal with North Korea in the six-nation talks beginning Feb. 25.

"I don't think there is any difference whatever between China and the United States," he said.

China is North Korea's last main ally and has played a key role in organizing the nuclear talks.

China, the United States, the Koreas, Japan and Russia last met in Beijing in August. Those talks ended without a settlement.

Bolton said Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan's admission that he leaked weapons technology to North Korea corroborated the U.S. belief that Pyongyang has not only a plutonium-based nuclear program but also a uranium-based one despite repeated denials.

U.S. officials in Washington have said Beijing disagrees with U.S. claims about such a uranium-based program.

"If the North Koreans don't acknowledge the half of their program that deals with uranium enrichment, it's hard to see how you can get a complete verifiable and irreversible dismantlement," Bolton said.
By Stephanie Hoo