By Chris Buckley and Teruaki Ueno

BEIJING (Reuters) - Talks aimed at dismantling North Korea's nuclear weapons program failed to reach agreement on Sunday, stalled on Pyongyang's demands for energy compensation and leaving one more day fo"" >

 
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Oddly Enough
12:56PM EST, Sun 11 Feb 2007
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Accord elusive at North Korea nuclear talks

Sun Feb 11, 2007 12:54PM EST

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By Chris Buckley and Teruaki Ueno

BEIJING (Reuters) - Talks aimed at dismantling North Korea's nuclear weapons program failed to reach agreement on Sunday, stalled on Pyongyang's demands for energy compensation and leaving one more day for negotiators to scramble for a deal.

Envoys from North and South Korea, the United States, Russia, Japan and host China have agreed on most of a plan that would oblige Pyongyang to close nuclear facilities in return for economic and security assurances.

But the initially promising session has faltered over North Korea's demand for a huge infusion of energy aid, which has left other countries suspicious that Pyongyang may then be unwilling to fully scrap its nuclear arms capabilities.

""We're not looking to provide energy assistance so that they could avoid taking the further steps on denuclearization,"" the chief U.S. envoy, Christopher Hill, told reporters late on Sunday. ""I think we have a real problem if we can't reach an agreement on this.""

Negotiators will now have Monday to seek a deal. None sounded hopeful.

""A breakthrough is not in sight,"" South Korea's Chun Yung-woo told reporters after Sunday's talks. He said the disputes were about the scope of energy aid ""and the scope, pace and range of the North's actions to denuclearize"".

Behind the energy demands, the impasse at the six-party talks appeared to reflect abiding distrust between isolated North Korea and the other countries, especially the United States, that has stymied agreement on specific disarmament steps despite over three years of the stop-start negotiations.  Continued...

 

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