PYONGYANG, North Korea, Jan. 17 (UPI) -- The chief Russian delegate to talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons program said the United States should lift financial sanctions on Pyongyang.
"The United States should have taken steps toward lifting financial restrictions and discussed the issue with the Koreans," said chief delegate Alexander Losyukov in an interview with the Russian news service Novosti.
The six-party talks involve North and South Korea, Russia, China, Japan, and the United States. They were started in 2003 to try to persuade Pyongyang to stop researching nuclear weapons, RIA Novosti reported Wednesday.
North Korea had signed a "joint statement" in September 2005, claiming it would abandon its nuclear program in exchange for security guarantees. However, North Korea boycotted the talks two months later after the United States demanded that it freeze certain bank accounts due to alleged money laundering.
Pyongyang has since conducted nuclear tests and has tested ballistic missiles.
Talks resumed, but showed no results, and Pyongyang said future talks depend on whether or not the United States is willing to lift the financial sanctions.
