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Sunday January 28, 5:25 PM6-party talks to resume Feb. 8 if U.S. gives final go-ahead: Aso(Kyodo) _ The six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program will resume Feb. 8 in Beijing if the United States gives a final go-ahead on the date, and the resumption will then be announced Monday, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso said Sunday."North Korea is saying the eighth (of February), and if the Unites States agrees, it will be the eighth. It will finally be announced tomorrow," Aso said at a press conference held in Tomakomai, Hokkaido, where he visited Sunday. Aso indicated that host China is working alongside and will make final efforts to convince North Korea on the nuclear issue so that concrete achievements could be made during the upcoming six-party talks, while the U.S. and North Korean sides hold talks on the financial issue from Tuesday in Beijing. Talks for ending U.S. financial sanctions on North Korea and achieving the "initial steps" for Pyongyang abandoning its nuclear program "are being held simultaneously in parallel," Aso said. The initial steps are expected to include North Korea freezing its Yongbyon nuclear complex and accepting inspections there by the International Atomic Energy Agency. On Friday, a U.S. Treasury Department spokeswoman said the United States and North Korea will resume talks on the financial sanctions from Tuesday in Beijing. Disputes between the two nations on the financial issue led the latest six-party session held last month to end without any progress despite its resumption after a 13-month hiatus. Although the two nations held financial talks on the sidelines and agreed to meet again, North Korea continued to stick to the sanctions issue even during the six-party session, refusing to discuss the nuclear issue unless Washington removes the financial curbs imposed on a Macao-based bank for allegedly distributing counterfeit U.S. currency and laundering money for Pyongyang. The six parties -- China, Japan, South and North Korea, Russia and the United States -- agreed then to resume their talks as soon as possible, but failed to set a date. |
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