U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says it is "very important" that North Korea make a full declaration of its nuclear activities, and has ordered Washington's chief nuclear negotiator to remain in China to continue talks.
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill was supposed to accompany Rice to Japan Wednesday. But Rice told reporters in Tokyo that discussions in Beijing were going well and it seemed wise to leave Hill to continue them.
She also says she has learned to be neither optimistic nor pessimistic on such matters, but simply to "go straight ahead."
Washington says North Korea has not provided a full list of all of its nuclear programs, as called for under an agreement reached with the U.S., China, Japan, Russia and South Korea.
China has hosted six-nation talks on North Korea's denuclearization process. The U.S. wants China to pressure North Korea to comply with the six-nation agreement, which promises aid to North Korea in exchange for compliance.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
