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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
June 26, 2008
Statement by the Press Secretary on North Korea
The United States welcomes the North Korean declaration of its nuclear programs. Today's development is an important step in the multi-step process laid out in the Six Party Talks between North Korea, China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States.
The Six Party Talks are based on a principle of "action for action." North Korea has pledged to disable all its nuclear facilities and tomorrow will destroy the cooling tower of the Yongbyon reactor. North Korea also pledged to declare its nuclear activities. This information will be essential to verifying that North Korea is ending all of its nuclear programs and activities.
The United States will respond to North Korea's actions by lifting the provisions of the Trading with the Enemy Act as well as announcing our intent to rescind North Korea's designation as a State Sponsor of Terror in 45 days. During this period, the United States will carefully assess North Korea's actions particularly with regard to verification.
There is still more work to be done in order for North Korea to end its isolation. It must dismantle all of its nuclear facilities, give up its separated plutonium, and resolve outstanding questions on its highly enriched uranium and proliferation activities. It must end these activities in a fully verifiable way.
Multilateral diplomacy is the best way to peacefully resolve the nuclear issue. North Korea should seize this moment of opportunity to restore its relationship with the international community.
The President will make a statement on this subject in the Rose Garden at 7:40 am EDT today.
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