Representatives of the six-party talks Tuesday ended their first-day
negotiation of the working-level talks on the economy and energy
cooperation at the truce village of Panmunjom.
The closed-door negotiation, attended by representatives from
North Korea, South Korea, China, the United States, Russia and
Japan, was held at the "House of Peace" on the South Korean
side.
The main task of the talks is to reach an agreement on how to
provide 950,000 tons of heavy oil or equivalent energy assistance
to North Korea under an agreement reached in the six-party talks in
February.
The representatives didn't give comments after Tuesday's
meeting.
The working group meeting is one of several scheduled for August
after the North last month shut down plants at Yongbyon which
produced plutonium for its nuclear bombs.
The shutdown, the first step in a six-nation nuclear disarmament
deal, was rewarded with 50,000 tons of heavy fuel oil from South
Korea.
It will also get major diplomatic and security benefits, such as
normalized relations with its old enemies the US and Japan.
The South Korea's Yonhap News Agency quoted an unnamed South
Korean official as saying that North Korea proposed in the meeting
concepts for what can be called "consumption-based assistance" and
"investment-based assistance." The official didn't give further
details.
Earlier on the day, South Korean chief delegate Chun Yung-woo
said "it is important (for North Korea) to specify in detail what
it wants."
The working-level meeting is set to finish on Wednesday.
(Xinhua News Agency August 8, 2007)
