hankyoreh

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill returned to Seoul the afternoon of October 3 after three days of talks with North Korean government officials in Pyongyang.

Diplomatic sources said that before leaving Pyongyang, Hill said he had “significant discussions,” making it likely the six-party talks will go forward.

His comments appear to indicate that there has been some degree of consensus between the United States and North Korea about their key sticking points, a verification protocol on the North’s declared nuclear programs and the removal of North Korea from the U.S. State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism. That would mean the six-party talks would be able to avoid a clash that could derail the process if the North restarts its reprocessing facility at the Yongbyon nuclear complex, as it has announced it would do.

In discussions with North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan, Hill appears to have found compromise of some sort about a gradual, separated approach that would include first creating a verification protocol containing overall principles for verification, having specific verification plans start with the Yongbyon plant, and having the United States allow the removal of the North from its terrorism blacklist to tentatively take effect if Pyongyang submits a verification plan to China.

Hill was scheduled to return to Seoul on October 2 but postponed his return to continue his discussions with Kim Kye-gwan.

Upon arriving in Seoul by way of Panmunjom, Hill met with Kim Sook, South Korea’s envoy to the six party talks, to report on his Pyongyang visit and talk about future courses of action. Japan’s envoy to the six-party talks, Akitaka Saiki, was in Seoul to consult separately with Hill and Kim Sook later in the evening. Hill is scheduled to visit China on October 4.

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