The US and North Korea had a bilateral meeting on the bank
account and denuclearization issues, top US negotiator Christopher
Hill said Wednesday.
"In our bilateral meeting with North Korea, we talked a little
about the bank account issues and agreed they are technical
matters," Hill said.
"We also talked about the way ahead on the denuclearization
issues in the 60-day period, which is why I'm here," he told
reporters after returning to his hotel from a brief chief
negotiators' meeting held on Wednesday evening.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry said the six-party talks will be
extended and the duration of the talks will depend on the
progress.
In the chief negotiators' session, Hill said the Chinese side
proposed to stay another day or two to see if the bank accounts
issue can be resolved.
"The North Korean delegation seems to be under very strict
instructions from Pyongyang not to do much negotiation unless the
money is transferred," Hill said.
Hill also disclosed that China and North Korea had a bilateral
discussion on Wednesday.
"I think maybe based on that they assessed the bank issue will
be resolved by tomorrow, and China assured us that we could resolve
the bank issue," he added.
"So we will look at the situation tomorrow," he said, adding
"but I don't want to wait all day long for technical people dealing
with bank issues…. I really expect to get something done
tomorrow."
(Xinhua News Agency March 22, 2007)
