North Korea Wednesday repeated demands for sanctions to be lifted before it returns to nuclear disarmament talks, resisting appeals from its ally China to resume dialogue, a news report said. Pyongyang's nuclear negotiators were holding a second day of talks in Beijing amid international efforts to kick-start the stalled negotiations, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported from the Chinese capital.
North Korea restated its stance that it would not come back to the six-party forum as long as sanctions are in force, Yonhap quoted a diplomatic source as saying. It urged China, as a permanent UN Security Council member, to play an active role in lifting the UN sanctions, the source said.
The negotiators also reportedly sought Beijing's backing for their demand that the United States agree to start talks about a permanent peace treaty before the nuclear forum resumes. China stressed North Korea should first return to the dialogue table and ease its tough conditions, the source was quoted as saying. The United States says the North must come back to the nuclear talks and reaffirm commitment to previous agreements before other matters are discussed.
UN chief Ban Ki-moon's top political adviser Lynn Pascoe is making a four-day visit to the North expected to focus on both nuclear matters and humanitarian aid, the first by a high-level UN official since 2004. Pascoe, under-secretary general for political affairs, held talks Wednesday with Foreign Minister Pak Ui-Chun, Pyongyang's official news agency reported. At a meeting with Wang, leader Kim Jong-Il reaffirmed his commitment in principle to denuclearisation, China's Xinhua news agency said. But there was apparently no firm pledge to return to dialogue.
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