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North Korea and the U.S. reached ¡°a certain level of agreement¡± during four days of talks that started Tuesday between the North¡¯s top nuclear negotiator and his U.S. counterpart in Berlin, North Korea¡¯s Foreign Ministry said Friday. The remark, carried by the Korea Central News Agency, was echoed by U.S. chief negotiator Christopher Hill.
Hill said Friday he believes the multilateral talks on the North¡¯s nuclear program will resume in a few weeks, most likely before the Feb. 18, the Lunar New Year¡¯s holiday. Hill made the comments in Seoul after meeting South Korea¡¯s Foreign Minister Song Min-soon.
Hill said in the Berlin talks he exchanged opinions with his North Korean counterpart Kim Kye-gwan, while concrete discussion and agreements will take place during the next meeting. Hill said the success of the Berlin talks will be decided by how much progress is made in the next round of six-party talks. But he was cautiously optimistic. "I am pretty convinced that we have the basis for a good session of the six-party talks," he said.
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U.S. top nuclear envoy Christopher Hill is surrounded by reporters after meeting with his South Korean counterpart at Foreign Ministry in Seoul on Friday./AP
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Earlier, Hill told reporters on arriving at Incheon International Airport that the exact date of the next round of six-party talks depends on China. He said he expects discussions over US$24 million in North Korean funds frozen in Macau¡¯s Banco Delta Asia to start next week. Hill heads to Tokyo on Saturday and to Beijing on Sunday to discuss the resumption date for the six-way talks.
The North Korean Foreign Ministry statement said the Berlin talks took place in a ¡°positive atmosphere.¡± The ministry did not elaborate what agreement was reached but stressed the significance of North Korean and U.S. officials sitting face to face to resolve the nuclear standoff.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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