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U.S. rules out one-on-one talksU.S., North Korean delegates have 'informal exchange'
BEIJING, China (CNN) -- As the second day of talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions got underway, the United States ruled out the prospect of holding one-on-one meetings with Pyongyang. The first day of the six-nation talks aimed at ending the standoff over North Korea's suspected nuclear weapons program finished with no visible rifts among the participants. There were also, however, few signs that Pyongyang and Washington made any diplomatic progress to resolve their differences. There was direct communication between U.S. and North Korean delegates but that was downplayed by the White House. "Assistant Secretary (of State, James) Kelly had an informal exchange with North Korean representatives in the plenary meeting at the end of the day," a U.S. embassy spokeswoman told reporters in Beijing. Deputy press secretary Claire Buchan said the Bush administration went into the multiparty talks knowing "nothing precludes conversations across the table between the two parties." However, she said there was "nothing separate" and no "individual bilateral discussions going on." In Washington, deputy State Department spokesman Philip Reeker called it an "informal exchange" between lead U.S. negotiator Kelly, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, and the North Korean representatives and it lasted about 40 minutes at the end of the plenary session. Reeker did not rule out the possibility of another such exchange, but said no separate "formal bilateral" meetings between the two sides would take place. Delegates began the second day of talks Thursday at 10 a.m. (0200 GMT) at the exclusive Diaoyutai State Guest House. The three days of closed-door talks in Beijing are seen as an opportunity for Washington and its allies South Korea and Japan, as well as China and Russia, to present their views to North Korea and hear from Pyongyang about its concerns. Among the developments Wednesday, Japan presented a framework for solving the crisis, a Japanese Foreign Ministry official at the talks told CNN. The framework says that the development, possession or transfer of nuclear weapons by North Korea can "in no way" be tolerated. It calls for North Korea to comply with all the requirements of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, promptly dismantle its nuclear weapons program and allow for verification that the program is gone. In return, North Korea would be assured that no country is pursuing hostile intent or wishes to change the regime in Pyongyang. (Nations' stances) Meanwhile, Kyodo news service quoted Japanese government officials as saying the U.S. delegation had rejected North Korea's key precondition that the two countries sign a non-aggression treaty. There was no immediate confirmation of that report. In a commentary in North Korea's state-run media on Wednesday, Pyongyang said the fate of the talks depended entirely on "whether the U.S. has a will to drop its hostile policy toward" North Korea. The commentary warned Washington to also refrain from putting up "unreasonable conditions" for North Korea. (Full story) Diplomatic scramblingThe Beijing meeting is the culmination of months of frantic diplomatic scrambling, particularly by China, to cultivate some common ground between Pyongyang and Washington. The discussions run through Friday. Most of the parties say the talks are only the beginning of what most expect to be a long, drawn-out process. The head of the North Korean delegation, Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Yong Il, is a relatively low-level official, and observers say he is unlikely to have the authority to do anything other than stick rigidly to Pyongyang's stated line. As such, few are expecting any major breakthroughs this week.
A senior State Department official in Washington said the U.S. delegation would not offer inducements to encourage North Korea to end its nuclear weapons program. The delegation is "not going with some package of rewards in anticipation of progress," the official said. Kelly would urge Pyongyang to submit to "a verifiable end" of its nuclear program, the official said, but gave no details of what that might entail. The U.S. position has the broad backing of South Korea and Japan -- both key regional allies. In recent weeks, U.S. officials have told CNN the Bush administration is prepared to support a package of incentives for Pyongyang's guarantee that it will freeze, and eventually verifiably dismantle, its nuclear program. The deal would include economic incentives, officials have said, such as an end to a long-standing trade embargo and U.S. assistance in helping North Korea secure loans from international lending institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the Asian Development Bank. But one official said consultations on lifting sanctions would only take place once North Korea took "irreversible" steps to dismantle its nuclear capability. "You can't just turn off the lights at Yongbyon and that's it," he said, referring to the North Korean reactor believed to be at the heart of the nuclear weapons program. "Freezing would be a first initial step, but we want the plutonium out of the facility." CNN Senior Executive Producer Richard Griffiths in Beijing, State Department Correspondent Andrea Koppel and Producer Elise Labott in Washington contributed to this report.
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