NORTH KOREA'S STANCE

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Meanwhile North Korea on Thursday announced its stance regarding its bilateral talks with the United States, and said that South Korea should not meddle in the process. Pyongyang pointed out that the denuclearization talks does not involve Seoul whatsoever. Stressing that there isn't much time left to produce results, the state urged Washington to come up with a new solution in future talks.

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​North Korea has issued a statement for the South Korean government regarding Pyongyang-Washington denuclearization talks. The statement was signed by the official at the North's Foreign Ministry in charge of U.S. affairs. It's quite unprecedented for the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs to issue a statement for the South. The statement says that the denuclearization talks only involves North Korea and the U.S., and that South Korea must not meddle in the matter. It stated clearly that the negotiations will be conducted by Pyongyang and Washington one-on-one without engaging Seoul whatsoever. This means that Pyongyang wants to exclude Seoul from the denuclearization talks. The North also denied the South Korean government's earlier statement that the two Koreas were maintaining contact behind closed doors. This indicates Pyongyang's mistrust in Seoul's role as a facilitator in the denuclearization talks. In remarks addressing Washington, the statement urged the U.S. government to resume negotiations with the right solution as soon as possible, emphasizing a sense of urgency. In other words, Pyongyang is calling for resuming the dialogue in the near future,but with certain preconditions. The North wants the U.S. to show a proper negotiating attitude, appoint negotiators who understand its stance, and present a viable solution. After the North transferred the responsibility for the denuclearization talks from the United Front Department to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the latter has tried to use a different approach in the negotiations.

[Soundbite] CHUNG DAE-JIN(PROF. AJOU UNIVERSITY) : "The statement seems to indicate that the North wants to prepare for working-level talks rather than denying its willingness to negotiate, and is calling for Washington to prepare as well."

Observers say Pyongyang is trying to adjust the pace of the denuclearization talks and solidify its stance amid numerous signs of the talks' resumption. However, the South Korean government's plan to act as a facilitator will likely hit snags.