According to a press release distributed by the U.S. State Department on Wednesday, Rice had an interview with Washington Post editorial writers on Monday. She reportedly said, "I think the intelligence community now believes that there is an undisclosed either imported or manufactured weapons-grade HEU in North Korea."

She added, "But that's why the verification protocol becomes even more important than to establishing what the nature and status of the HEU program is and what they've done with it and what they might do in the future."

In a farewell press conference held earlier on Monday, U.S. President George W. Bush cited the possibility of North Korea having developed a HEU program and repeatedly urged the North to implement matters agreed at the six-party talks to verify it.

(englishnews@chosun.com )