N. Korea lashes out at U.S., will still join nuclear talks

SEOUL, South Korea -- Pyongyang called a senior American official "human scum" for criticizing North Korea's leader, but the reclusive nation said it would still join U.S.-proposed multilateral talks on its suspected development of nuclear weapons.

The United States, meanwhile, said Sunday it was committed to finding a diplomatic solution to the nuclear standoff and was not trying to end communist leader Kim Jong Il's rule.

North Korea said that it won't deal with U.S. Undersecretary of State John Bolton because he described the North's leader as a "tyrannical dictator" and said "life is a hellish nightmare" for many North Koreans.

Bolton had made the remarks during his visit to South Korea last week.

"Such human scum and bloodsucker is not entitled to take part in the talks," said a North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman, according to the North's official KCNA news agency.

"We have decided not to consider him as an official of the U.S. administration any longer nor to deal with him," the unidentified spokesman said.

He said, however, that there was no change in Pyongyang's decision to hold six-country talks on the nuclear issue.

The countries involved are expected to be North Korea, the United States, China, Russia, Japan and South Korea.

Policy reversal

Pyongyang agreed to the six-way talks despite saying for months it would only consent to bilateral talks with the United States. The North says it will work on the sidelines of the negotiations to push for one-on-one talks with Washington, which has insisted on multilateral talks because it says the North's nuclear program is a regional concern.

No date has been set for the talks, which are expected to be held in China, and no decision has been made on the level of the officials who will attend.

A Japanese newspaper reported Sunday that Washington and Tokyo have begun talks on forming an inspection team to ensure that North Korea eliminates its nuclear program.

Bolton discussed details of the plan with senior Japanese officials Friday, after the North had agreed to the multilateral discussions, the Yomiuri Shimbun said.

The inspectors would likely come from the five countries expected to participate in the talks with North Korea, said the newspaper. The report could not be immediately confirmed and there was no word on whether Pyongyang would allow the inspections.

The United States and North Korea last held official talks in April in Beijing. They've since had unofficial discussions in New York via North Korean diplomats at the United Nations.

The nuclear standoff began in October, when U.S. officials said North Korea acknowledged having a uranium-based nuclear weapons program.