The delegation from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) will continue to seek peaceful solution to the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue with flexibility and patience, said a spokesman for the DPRK delegation in Beijing Friday.

 

Hyun Hak-bong, the spokesman, said at a press briefing that the DPRK put forward flexible proposal to break the stalemate in the nuclear issue, confirming that denuclearization was the ultimate goal of the DPRK.

 

The DPRK delegation also reiterated that the DPRK will abandon the nuclear weapon program if the United States gives up the hostile policy towards the DPRK with practical action, Hyun said.

 

Hyun said the DPRK delegation made it clear that the DPRK will implement the nuclear freezing project if the United States takes back its demands of the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement and accepts the DPRK's requirements of compensation.

 

The DPRK maintains that nuclear freezing means no more production, transfer or test of the nuclear weapons, and the targets of the nuclear freezing includes all equipment related to nuclear weapons and all materials distilled after processing, he said.

 

The DPRK will not only freeze, but also dismantle these nuclear equipment under mature condition, he said, noting that the DPRK needs a great political courage to put forward such a nuclear freezing proposal.

 

He said the DPRK will start the nuclear freezing after concerned parties implement corresponding compensation, and related checking method will be discussed within the six-party talks framework after the "freeze for compensation" agreement is achieved.

 

Compensation was necessary for establishing mutual trust, and therefore the nuclear freezing must proceed at the same time with relevant compensation, he said, noting that the practice of the DPRK's nuclear freezing will be based on the implementation of compensation.

 

The United States was asked in DPRK's proposal to participate in providing energy aid to the DPRK after the DPRK completes the implementation of nuclear freezing, to remove the DPRK from the black list of supporting terrorism countries, and to eliminate economic sanctions and blockage towards the DPRK, Hyun said.

 

The DPRK will show flexibility over the issues such as the requirements to remove the DPRK from the list of supporting terrorism countries and to eliminate sanctions and blockage towards the DPRK if the United States and other countries practically participate in providing energy aid to the DPRK, Hyun said.

 

Under the current situation that fundamental differences still existing between the DPRK and the United States, the DPRK's proposal of "freeze for compensation" was welcomed by all sides because it was conducive for eliminating mutual distrust and narrowing differences, Hyun said.

 

(Xinhua News Agency June 26, 2004)