United States Says North Korea Procuring Enrichment Equipment

The United States yesterday accused North Korea of continuing its efforts to acquire equipment for its uranium enrichment program, the Financial Times reported (see GSN, Dec. 16).

A senior U.S. State Department official made the charge and said that the activities provide further justification for the U.S.-led Proliferation Security Initiative (see related story, today; Guy Dinmore, Financial Times, Dec. 17).

China, meanwhile, has appointed a special envoy to coordinate the six-nation talks on the North Korean nuclear standoff. Ning Fukui will consult with Japan, North Korea, Russia, South Korea and the United States to restart the stalled negotiations.

“We hope with the efforts of all relevant parties, the second round of talks can be held as soon as possible,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said today. Ning previously served as the Foreign Ministry’s deputy director of Korean affairs.

“Ambassador Ning Fukui is very familiar with the affairs on the Korean Peninsula,” Liu added (Agence France-Presse, Dec. 18).

U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said yesterday that the United States is hoping the next round of talks could be held “very early in the new year” (Dinmore, Financial Times).

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