N. Korea pushes for talks with U.S.

SEOUL | North Korea, in its latest push for direct nuclear talks with the United States, threatened Monday to “go our own way” if Washington does not agree, suggesting it would continue to develop its atomic arsenal.

In early October, the reclusive country said it could return to the stalled six-nation talks on its nuclear weapons drive, on the condition that it first holds one-on-one talks with Washington and the talks make progress.

The Obama administration has said it could have direct talks with the North, but ruled out any substantial negotiations on the nuclear issue, stressing that face-to-face contacts would be used as a tool to persuade Pyongyang to return to the six-party talks. Besides the United States and North Korea, the talks include China, Japan, South Korea and Russia.

In its response to Washington’s unresponsiveness, the North Korean Foreign Ministry said Monday that it is time for the United States to make a decision on dialogue, as Pyongyang has already expressed its position on the conditions for the resumption of the dormant talks.

“As [North Korea] was magnanimous enough to clarify the stand that it is possible to hold multilateral talks including the six-party talks depending on the talks with the United States, now is the U.S. turn,” the ministry told Pyongyang’s official news agency.

The statement came after behind-the-scenes contacts between the North and the United States failed to produce tangible progress.

Ri Gun, North Korea’s deputy nuclear envoy, traveled to New York and San Diego last week for academic forums during which he met Sung Kim, the U.S. special envoy on the North’s nuclear disarmament.

State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said U.S. and North Korean envoys had useful discussions on the goal of restarting six-party talks.

“We know that there is an invitation to [North Korea envoy Stephen] Bosworth to come to North Korea,” he said. “We’re still considering that invitation.”

The North Korean Foreign Ministry characterized the talks as not particularly productive.

“No discussion has been made there on any substantial issue concerning the bilateral dialogue,” it said, hinting that Pyongyang failed to gain what it wanted through the contacts. Neither North Korea nor the United States has released details of the outcome of the meeting.

The ministry also warned the North would “go our own way” if the United States is not ready to sit at the negotiating table with Pyongyang, indicating that it would take further steps toward nuclear armament and long-range missile tests.

The North has reportedly reactivated its plutonium reprocessing facility, the source of fuel for an estimated half-dozen nuclear bombs. It had mothballed its nuclear program under an agreement before the six-nation talks stalled.