BEIJING, Sept. 3 — U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill says the DPRK is agreeing to declare and disable all of its nuclear programs by the end of this year.
This follows meetings between Washington and Pyongyang in Geneva.
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill calls the two days of talks with the DPRK substantive. He says they will help improve the chances of success at the six-party talks later this month in Beijing.
Hill says they agreed the DPRK will provide a full declaration of all nuclear programs and will disable those programs by the end of this year.
Hill said, "I think this is very important. Of course we will have to work out some of the details of this in the six party process because, as I have stressed many times, this is not a bilateral process at all. It's a multilateral six party process but we had a very good understanding of this today and an understanding that we need to pick up the pace and get through this phase in 2007."
Kim Gye Gwan, the head of the DPRK delegation, confirms his country's "clear willingness" to fully declare and disable its nuclear programs.
Kim said, "We agreed on a lot of things between the US and the DPRK. We are happy for the way the peace talks went. We made it clear and we showed clear willingness to declare and dismantle all nuclear facilities."
A full session of the Six-Party talks on the DPRK's nuclear program is scheduled for mid-September in Beijing. The talks will set down a more detailed implementation plan for the DPRK's nuclear disablement.
In exchange, the DPRK will receive oil and other aid.
