Chun Yung Woo, chief negotiator of the Republic of Korea (ROK) to the six-party talks on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, on Monday urged the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to shut down its nuclear facilities in Yongbyon.

"The next step is to shut down the nuclear facilities in Yongbyon under the supervision of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)", Chun was quoted as saying by an ROK official.

Chun made the remarks at the plenary meeting of the sixth round six-party talks, which opened in Beijing Monday morning.

Prior to the talks, the United States agreed to unfreeze a DPRK bank account at Macao-based Banco Delta Asia (BDA).

The account held by the DPRK was frozen in 2005, after the U.S. Treasury Department, suspecting the BDA of helping the DPRK launder money, ordered American financial institutions to suspend business ties with the Macao-based bank.

Rejecting the charge, the DPRK demanded the U.S. lift the financial sanctions before it could return to the six-party talks, which remained stalled for 13 months since the end of 2005.

All parties are preparing to fulfill their corresponding commitments after the funds are unfrozen and the ROK has pledged to provide energy assistance to the DPRK in initial steps to fulfill the Sept. 19 joint statement. Therefore, the next step is to shut down the nuclear facilities in Yongbyon, said Chun.

Under a Feb. 13 deal, the DPRK will have 60 days to shut down its Yongbyon nuclear facilities in return for energy aid and security pledges.

If the denuclearization will successfully reach the final destination, the most important thing is to remove distrust between related parties and create favorable political environments, said Chun.

Source: Xinhua