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S Korea 'may delay aid to North' S Korea 'may delay aid to North'
(about 10 hours later)
South Korea is considering delaying rice aid to North Korea after it failed to meet a key deadline to shut down a nuclear reactor, officials say.South Korea is considering delaying rice aid to North Korea after it failed to meet a key deadline to shut down a nuclear reactor, officials say.
Earlier this month, Seoul said the aid would resume regardless of whether the North met Saturday's deadline. Seoul had said aid would resume whether or not Pyongyang met the deadline, but it is now reviewing this, reports say.
But South Korean media reported on Monday that the government was having a change of heart. Russia, meanwhile, said the missed deadline was down to failure by the US to resolve a financial dispute.
The North had agreed to "shut down and seal" its Yongbyon reactor by Saturday as part of a deal reached in February. The row, over frozen North Korea accounts, has stalled implementation of the nuclear deal for several weeks.
But progress has stalled because of a row over $25m (£13m) of North Korean funds frozen in a Macau bank. Under the landmark 13 February deal, North Korea agreed to "shut down and seal" its Yongbyon reactor within 60 days in return for aid.
Saturday's deadline passed with no official comment from the North, which was holding mass celebrations to mark the birthday of the late founding ruler Kim Il-Sung. But it linked progress on the deal to the return of $25m (£13m) of its money frozen in a Macau bank.
Reaction from its dialogue partners - the US, China, Russia, South Korea and Japan - was also relatively mild. The US says the money is now available to North Korea, but there has been no confirmation of this from Pyongyang and Saturday's deadline came and went with no official comment from the North.
US envoy Christopher Hill said he had been urged by China - the key negotiators in the talks - to wait "a couple more days" for Pyongyang to comply. Its dialogue partners - the US, China, Russia, South Korea and Japan - appear to be giving North Korea a few more days to comply.
Major donorMajor donor
N KOREA NUCLEAR DEAL N Korea to 'shut down and seal' Yongbyon reactor, then disable all nuclear facilitiesIn return, will be given 1m tonnes of heavy fuel oilN Korea to invite IAEA back to monitor dealUnder earlier 2005 deal, N Korea agreed to end nuclear programme and return to non-proliferation treatyN Korea's demand for light water reactor to be discussed at "appropriate time" Limited outcry Q&A: Nuclear standoff
South Korean officials met on Sunday to discuss their next steps.South Korean officials met on Sunday to discuss their next steps.
The two Koreas are due to begin economic talks on Wednesday, at which the resumption of rice shipments is to be discussed.The two Koreas are due to begin economic talks on Wednesday, at which the resumption of rice shipments is to be discussed.
N KOREA NUCLEAR DEAL N Korea to 'shut down and seal' Yongbyon reactor, then disable all nuclear facilitiesIn return, will be given 1m tonnes of heavy fuel oilN Korea to invite IAEA back to monitor dealUnder earlier 2005 deal, N Korea agreed to end nuclear programme and return to non-proliferation treatyN Korea's demand for light water reactor to be discussed at "appropriate time" class="" href="/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/6556417.stm">Limited outcry class="" href="/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/2340405.stm">Q&A: Nuclear standoff North Korea asked Seoul for 400,000 tonnes of rice last month.
South Korea, a major food donor to the impoverished North, suspended shipments after Pyongyang's missile tests in July 2006, but agreed to resume them after the February deal.
Unnamed officials told South Korean media that the talks were likely to go ahead, but the government was undecided over whether to resume rice aid.Unnamed officials told South Korean media that the talks were likely to go ahead, but the government was undecided over whether to resume rice aid.
"We can't just ignore and do nothing if... North Korea doesn't take initial steps [to meet February's agreement]," one official told the Dong-a Ilbo daily."We can't just ignore and do nothing if... North Korea doesn't take initial steps [to meet February's agreement]," one official told the Dong-a Ilbo daily.
Amid signs earlier this month that the North would fail to meet Saturday's deadline, Vice Unification Minister Shin Eon-sang told reporters it would "not affect the South's decision to despatch rice aid to the North."
North Korea asked Seoul for 400,000 tonnes of rice aid at inter-Korean talks last month.
South Korea - a major donor of food aid to the impoverished North - suspended shipments of rice and fertiliser after Pyongyang's missile tests in July 2006.
It agreed to resume deliveries of fertiliser in mid-March, a month after the landmark agreement, in which the North agreed to shut down its reactor in exchange for energy aid.
Bank rowBank row
Japan on Monday said it was "extremely regrettable" that the North missed Saturday's deadline, adding that setting a new deadline was "not appropriate". Meanwhile, there was reaction from North Korea's other dialogue partners over the missed deadline, with Russia accusing the US over the funding row.
"North Korea is in a position to immediately implement the agreement," Yasuhisa Shiozaki, the chief Cabinet spokesman, said. "We cannot move forward as long as the North Korean side says that it has not received the money," Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov said.
The deadline passed as the North marked Kim Il-Sung's birthday "We need to talk not about deadlines but about fulfilling these agreements," he said.
US nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill described the missed deadline as cause for concern. Japan said it was "extremely regrettable" that the North missed Saturday's deadline, adding that setting a new deadline was "not appropriate".
But he said Chinese officials had urged the US to show patience and to wait "a couple more days". US nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill says the missed deadline is cause for concern, but has also acknowledged Chinese requests for patience from the US.
"They said the lines of communication were open... if it is going to get resolved it certainly should be able to get resolved very soon," he said. North Korea said at the end of last week it was waiting to confirm it could access its frozen accounts in Macau-based Banco Delta Asia.
North Korea said at the end of last week it was waiting to confirm it could access its accounts in the Macau-based Banco Delta Asia (BDA).
The US unblocked the funds after February's nuclear deal, but finding a way to transfer the money has taken some time. However, the US has said the dispute is resolved.
The funds were frozen after the US accused the BDA in 2005 of acting as a conduit for money earned by Pyongyang from illegal activities, claims the bank denies.The funds were frozen after the US accused the BDA in 2005 of acting as a conduit for money earned by Pyongyang from illegal activities, claims the bank denies.
Last month, the US blacklisted the bank, calling it a "willing pawn" in North Korea's illegal activities.
On Monday, BDA announced it was challenging the ruling which, it said, "lacked specific facts or evidentiary support" and was "politically motivated since it was based on disputes between the United States and North Korea".