Seoul seeks new draft of joint document
By Qin Jize (China Daily)
Updated: 2005-08-06 07:16

Nuclear disarmament talks dragged into their 11th day on Friday with Seoul striving for a new draft of the elusive joint document.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs and top U.S. negotiator for the six-party talks Christopher Hill speaks to journalists at a hotel in Beijing August 3, 2005. [Reuters]

After a Thursday meeting of negotiators from Pyongyang, Washington and Seoul, Seoul's top envoy Song Min-soon, organizer of the trilateral gathering, said work was underway on further refining the text of a joint document.

Reports said Song felt a possible need for a new draft, saying all countries must make efforts to reach a compromise because they cannot give up on the possibility that the gap can be narrowed.

There were no clues as to what had been suggested in a possible new draft, but it is clear that Seoul has offered some 2,000 megawatts of electricity to Pyongyang if it gives up its nuclear programmes.

The six nations, involving China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), the United States, the Republic of Korea (ROK), Russia and Japan, have been discussing the draft of a joint document, put forward by host country China, since last Saturday.

Bilateral talks were continuing on Friday after Pyongyang's chief delegate Kim Kye-gwan told reporters on Thursday night that his country insists on retaining the right to the peaceful use of nuclear power.

However, there were no breakthroughs on Friday and the talks are likely to last till next week as sources in the hotel said delegations have extended their room bookings.

Observers say Pyongyang's refusal to abandon nuclear programmes for peaceful use is so far the main sticking point with the United States at the talks.

There is the possibility of more meetings between Washington and Pyongyang, according to the spokesman of Chinese delegation Qin Gang, and the two sides have already met at least nine times in the past fortnight.

Despite the lack of a joint document all participants in the talks want to keep the talks going, said US chief delegate Hill Christopher, adding the talks are getting very much to the end of the process.

The fourth round of talks, which come after a 13-month stalemate, and started on July 26, have been the longest since the process began in 2003.

(China Daily 08/06/2005 page2)

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