U.S. still prodding N. Korea

WASHINGTON, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- The United States is still urging North Korea to complete its denuclearization regimen, a Bush administration official said Monday.

Sean McCormack, assistant secretary of state for public affairs, said he could not confirm reports North Korea not only had taken equipment out of storage and moved it toward its nuclear facility but had taken a step to remove seals installed by international nuclear watchdogs.

"At this point, you know, the assessment is that they haven't taken the qualitative step to try to fundamentally reverse, in an operational sense, the steps that they have previously taken, in terms of getting Yongbyon up and running," McCormack said.

The diplomatic official said there are questions about how long it would take and how much it would cost North Korea to do so. He said North Korea is being coaxed to focus its energies on completing the verification process.

"We continue to urge them, as well as having the Chinese, as chair of the six-party, make it very clear to them that if this process is going to move forward, they need to fulfill their commitments and certainly not take the kinds of steps that they say they are taking right now and it seems we have every indication that they are taking right now," McCormack said.