U.S. Fails to Sway N. Korea on Pact

U.S. diplomats failed to persuade North Korea on Friday to reverse its decision to drop out of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Friday’s 3 1/2-hour meeting was the second this week between the two governments, which have no formal diplomatic relations.

“There has been no progress so far,” Vice Foreign Minister Kang Sok Ju of North Korea said later. But “the talks haven’t failed yet.” Kang said the two sides agreed to meet again, but he did not say when.

North Korea announced March 12 that it would abandon the treaty. The withdrawal takes effect June 12.

North Korea had submitted to six inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency, which monitors the accord, but balked when inspectors asked to see two facilities suspected of being nuclear waste dumps. North Korea says its nuclear program is peaceful.

North Korea said in March that it was abandoning the pact in order to defend its interests and also because of “nuclear war maneuvers of the United States.”

State Department negotiator Robert L. Gallucci said last week that to get North Korea to reconsider, Washington would consider allowing North Korea to inspect U.S. bases in South Korea to verify that they contain no nuclear weapons.