U.S. offers N. Korea aid, with restrictionsWASHINGTON: The United States has offered a detailed package of economic and energy assistance in exchange for North Korea's giving up nuclear weapons and technology, according to American officials.
But the offer, made last week during two days of intense talks in Beijing, would hinge on North Korea's agreeing to begin dismantling some of the equipment it is using to expand its nuclear arsenal, even before returning to negotiations.
It is unclear whether North Korea will accept the offer, which is more specific - in both the details and the timing - than a vaguely worded statement of principles that the North signed in September 2005, a year before its first nuclear test.
The combination of incentives and demands was the focal point of three- way meetings on Nov. 28 and 29 involving Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill; North Korea's vice foreign minister, Kim Kye Gwan; and Chinese officials at the Diaoyutai state guesthouse in Beijing. The incentives offered by the United States include food aid from the United States, Japan and South Korea, a senior administration official said Tuesday.