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South Korean and U.S. envoys reaffirmed Monday the six-party talks on Korea's denuclearization will continue despite the latest allegations that Pyongyang transferred nuclear technology to Syria.

"We discussed various aspects of the six-party process... what we would expect to see as we continue on this process," Christopher Hill, U.S. assistant secretary of state, said after meeting his South Korean counterpart, Kim Sook.

"It's going to be an ongoing consultation," Kim said.

The two envoys are their governments' chief delegates to the six-nation forum, also including North Korea, China, Russia and Japan. The nations reached a series of agreements from September 2005 that, when successfully implemented, would lead to a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula by dismantling Pyongyang's atomic weapons and programs.

The process has been stalled, however, since the North missed the Dec. 31, 2007, deadline to provide a "complete and correct" declaration of its nuclear inventory. Another challenge came from U.S. intelligence assessment announced last week that North Korea helped Syria build a nuclear reactor, which critics of the six-party talks use to demand a change in course in dealing with Pyongyang.

Kim Sook, just recently appointed as South Korea's nuclear envoy, came to Washington just after a U.S. delegation, led by State Department Korea director Sung Kim, returned from two days of negotiations in Pyongyang.

"I think Sung Kim did a very good job during his stay in Pyongyang last week," the South Korean envoy said, indicating there was progress from the visit.

Asked about Syria, he said, "That was one of the issues that we have discussed, between Chris and I, this afternoon."

The six-party deals call for phased "action-for-action" implementation. Once North Korea submits a declaration that is satisfactory to other parties, the U.S. is expected to remove the communist regime from its list of terrorism-sponsoring states and lift sanctions imposed under the Trading with the Enemy Act.

Hill confirmed these U.S. commitments as he talked to reporters after the meeting with his South Korean counterpart.

"We also talked about all the commitments," he said. "I reiterated the position that Secretary (Condoleezza) Rice has taken on many occasions, that as the North Koreans complete all of their requirements, all of their obligations, we will certainly complete ours."

Kim and Hill will continue their talks over dinner Monday before Kim returns to Seoul on Tuesday. The South Korean envoy also met Rice for a brief introductory call.

WASHINGTON, April 28 (Yonhap)