U.S. delegation visits N. Korean nukes

Beijing - An unofficial delegation of Americans who visited North Korea said Saturday they saw the country's disputed Yongbyon nuclear facility but said they couldn't give details until information about their trip was reported to Washington.

The visit came as the United States, China, Russia, Japan and the two Koreas were trying to arrange a new round of talks on ending the standoff over the North's nuclear program.

The five-member American delegation was allowed to see all of the sites they had requested, said one member, John W. Lewis, a Stanford University professor emeritus of international relations.

"We did go to Yongbyon," Lewis told reporters after arriving at Beijing's Capital Airport from Pyongyang. He was referring to the nuclear facility that has been closed to outsiders since North Korea expelled U.N. inspectors at the end of 2002.

However, the Americans said they wouldn't give any more details about the visit, which began Tuesday, until two delegation members who are on the staff of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee had reported to Washington.

Lewis stressed that the trip was a private effort aimed at improving understanding of North Korean issues.

"We are a private delegation," he said. "We were not there to negotiate. We were not there to be inspectors."

North Korea has been under international pressure to give up its nuclear weapons programs. But the communist regime is digging in with its hardline rhetoric, heralding tough negotiations.

On Friday, the communist state said that it would be foolish for the United States to expect it to follow the example of "some Middle East countries," an apparent reference to Libya's decision to renounce weapons of mass destruction.

A North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman hinted that the recent decisions by Libya and Iran to allow intrusive inspections of their suspected weapons programs would not affect its strategy.

"The United States is hyping recent developments in some Middle East countries, the cases orchestrated by itself," the spokesman said, without citing Libya and Iran by name. "It is seized with hallucination that the same would happen on the Korean Peninsula and some countries echo this 'hope' and 'expect' some change."

In comments carried by North Korea's official KCNA news agency, he said North Korea "has never been influenced by others and this will not happen in the future."

"To expect any 'change' from the DPRK stand is as foolish as expecting a shower from clear sky," the spokesman said, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. "It is the historical truth that peace is won and defended only with strength."

Last month, Libya said it was giving up its weapons of mass destruction after months of secret talks with the United States and Britain. Washington said it hoped other countries would follow Libya's example, which was designed to get the United States to lift sanctions.

Iran also agreed last month to allow international inspections of its nuclear programs, though it insists those activities are peaceful.

Earlier this week, North Korea said it would freeze its nuclear programs in exchange for U.S. aid and removal from Washington's roster of nations that sponsor terrorism.

Secretary of State Colin Powell has called the offer a "positive step" and said prospects for resuming negotiations had improved. South Korean Foreign Minister Yoon Young-kwan said the offer would help create an atmosphere favorable to a fresh round of talks.

For months, the United States, China, Russia, Japan and the two Koreas have been attempting to arrange a new round of six-nation negotiations on the nuclear crisis. The first round in August ended with little progress.

Washington has rejected the North's proposals in the past, saying it wants North Korea to begin dismantling its nuclear weapons programs before it delivers any concessions.

The crisis flared in October 2002 when U.S. officials accused North Korea of running a secret nuclear program in violation of a 1994 deal requiring the North to freeze its nuclear facilities. Washington and its allies cut off free oil shipments, also part of the 1994 accord. -- Associated Press

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