June 24, 1999 19:40
The US State Department announced Thursday (KST) that last May's on site survey of Kumchangri produced no evidence to suggest that North Korea is in violation of the 1994 Geneva Accord. In his regular briefing, spokesman James Rubin said that inspectors found a labyrinth complex of empty caves, but that additional visits will be carried out with the next scheduled inspection due in May 2000. The survey team is known to have said that the caves are too small to accept nuclear facilities.
Rubin continued that the survey findings had been communicated to the US Congress, South Korea and Japan, and North Korea at the Beijing talks. The facility was first commented on in the New York Times in August last year, and last March the North agreed to on-site visits in exchange for 600,000 tons of food aid.
(Park Do-shik, dspark@chosun.com)
- Copyright © Chosunilbo & Chosun.com