Russia criticizes U.S. for delay in solving financial dispute with DPRK

Source: Xinhuanet | 04-17-2007 15:00

MOSCOW, April 16 (Xinhua) -- Russia on Monday accused the United States of deferring the settlement of financial disputes with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and hindering progress of the multinational nuclear talks.

"The U.S. Department of Treasury has not dropped objections to the use of the money and this is creating problems. We won't be able to proceed before the North Korea says that it has received the money," Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying.

Losyukov will visit Japan soon and discuss the issue with the Japanese top negotiator to the talks, which also involves the DPRK,the United States, China and the Republic of Korea.

The six-nation talks, which aimed at achieving a denuclearized Korean Peninsula, have been in recess since March 22 due to difficulties in solving the financial dispute between the DPRK and the U.S..

Washington blacklisted the Banco Delta Asia (BDA) in Macao in September 2005, accusing it of being a money-laundering front for Pyongyang. The DPRK has denied the charges but its 25 million U.S. dollar funds in the BDA were frozen.

The DPRK agreed to shut down and seal its Yongbyon nuclear facility during the last phase of talks in February, on the condition that its funds frozen in BDA are returned.

The U.S. said earlier this month that it supported the return of the DPRK funds and had identified a way to do that. The DPRK said last Friday that it will "move" if the funds were released.

In a joint document signed on Feb. 13, the six parties agreed to a 60-day deadline, which ended last Saturday, to implement a series of initial steps, mainly including the shutdown and sealing of the Yongbyon nuclear facility and the provision of energy aid to the DPRK.

Editor:Du Xiaodan