United States and North Korean negotiators have reached
agreement on two of the three broad issues discussed last week in
formal talks in New York City.
Both sides agreed to conduct three joint recovery operations
in 1997 for remains of Americans buried in North Korea and to
begin joint archival investigations this summer.
There was no agreement reached on interviewing American
defectors in North Korea, but both sides said discussions would
continue on this issue.
Last week negotiations ended in New York City when the North
Korean delegation was unable to respond constructively to U.S.
proposals in any of the three areas, said Deputy Assistant
Secretary of Defense for POW/Missing Personnel James W. Wold.
However, working-level contacts were maintained after the
formal talks, which led to the exchange of formal documents of
agreement. A copy of a joint statement is attached.
JOINT STATEMENT
Delegations of the United States and the Democratic Peoples
Republic of Korea held talks in New York May 4-13, 1997, on the
issue of accounting for missing U.S. servicemen from the Korean
War.
The talks proceeded in an atmosphere of trust and
cooperation.
In the talks the two sides agreed to conduct three joint
recovery operations in 1997 and, in principle, to conduct joint
archival investigations this summer.
Both sides agreed that human remains experts from the two
countries would hold working-level contacts as soon as possible
in order to implement the agreement.
Both sides expressed hope that this agreement will build
trust between the two countries and make positive contributions
towards their developing bilateral relationship.
