A senior official with the US delegation to the six-party talks
said in Beijing Wednesday that it is time to solve the Korean
Peninsular nuclear issue and the United States has offered a new
proposal.
The official said at the first day of the four-day talks that
the US delegation made a seven-page proposal to end the disputes
over the nuclear issue.
It is the first formal proposal that the United States has made
towards solving the nuclear issue, and "We did think it is now a
good time to offer the proposal," said the official, noting that
it's time to completely solve the issue.
In the proposal, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea
(DPRK) would be given a three-month preparatory period for
dismantlement and removal of nuclear facilities, and the DPRK is
also asked to offer the US side a listing of nuclear activities at
various time.
The proposal also set ways to solve the security concerns of the
DPRK, said the US official, adding that under the proposal, issues
like lifting sanctions over the DPRK and dealing with its energy
needs would be covered.
The official said the proposal is a "complex" one, because it is
a large program that involves a lot of things with the DPRK and
other parties.
It is said that the DPRK delegation has acquired a text of the
US proposal for further discussion.
"We do hope the DPRK to seriously look at what we have in mind,
and we don't want them to response us right now, " said the US
official, noting that the US side is patient and determined to
solve the problem.
According to the official, the US delegation had meetings with
delegations from China, Russia, Japan and the Republic of Korea
respectively shortly before the six-party talks opened here
Wednesday afternoon.
(Xinhua News Agency June 24, 2004)