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Ed Lavandera: Santa Fe talks described as cordial
SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO (CNN) -- Two North Korean diplomats will hold a second round of meetings Friday with Democratic New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. Richardson is not a member of the Bush administration, but he is well known to the North Koreans. He has negotiated with them before. Richardson is former U.N. ambassador and energy secretary in the Clinton administration. CNN anchor Paula Zahn talked with CNN's Ed Lavandera in Sante Fe about what is expected to expected come out of these meetings. The following is an edited transcript: ED LAVANDERA: Good morning, Paula. Well, we're told by aides close to the governor that planning for these meetings started happening just a couple of days ago. Two North Korean diplomats arrived here at the governor's residence in Sante Fe, New Mexico, yesterday afternoon. That includes North Korea's ambassador to the U.N. and his first secretary. They arrived here at the governor's residence and met with Gov. Bill Richardson and his wife over a two-hour working dinner. The talks were described as cordial but candid and that they will resume here at 9:00 in the morning Mountain Time. The governor [is] making it clear to the North Koreans that he is not a negotiator, not the special envoy on behalf of the administration, just someone who is in "a listening mode" and able to report back whatever the North Koreans tell him and that he will report back to Secretary of State Colin Powell whatever it is that the North Koreans tell him over the next couple of days or later on this morning. Aides close to the governor would not elaborate on what the North Koreans had brought up so far, but Bill Richardson says he's just happy to listen at this point. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GOV. BILL RICHARDSON (D), NEW MEXICO: I support the administration's policy. I'm going to try to be helpful. I am not an official negotiator. The administration has many channels that they're pursuing with the North Koreans. (END VIDEO CLIP) LAVANDERA: Paula, just an interesting bit of timing last night as the dinner was going on and the news broke that North Korea was backing out of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. About five minutes, 10 minutes, after the news started breaking, the North Korean diplomats here left the governor's residence. Officials here with the governor saying that it would be very wrong to read anything into that. But just kind of a break down of how events played out here last night -- Paula. ZAHN: Ed, before we let you go, a senior administration official has told CNN that they are going to pass along a message through Ambassador Richardson to the envoys that would basically indicate the U.S. is willing to give assurances in writing that it will not attack North Korea. Is anybody confirming that? LAVANDERA: The governor hasn't spoken. He had a chance yesterday as he walked the diplomats out to their cars. They left the governor's residence here last night. The governor walked back inside the residence without speaking with reporters. He did speak with reporters before the meeting. The only thing that the aides here are saying publicly is that they support what the administration is doing so far and from what you just said and we've been reporting, that the governor is here to pass along that message, as well. But much more elaboration beyond that isn't being said here publicly just yet.
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