Go 0ato Original

Agence France-Presse
Friday 25 April 0a2003

US Secretary of State Colin Powell said that three-way talks between North 0aKorea, China and the United States had ended a day earlier than expected and 0awarned Pyongyang that Washington would not respond to threats.

Powell said the talks had "concluded" and that while US and Chinese officials 0amight hold talks on Friday, the North Korean involvement was over. Three days of 0atalks, from April 23 to 25 had been scheduled initially.

While announcing the end of the discussions, Powell delivered a strongly 0aworded warning for North Korea not to make threats as Pyongyang ratcheted up its 0arhetoric.

"They should not leave this series of discussions that have been held in 0aBeijing with the slightest impression that the United States and its partners 0aand the nations in the region will be intimidated by bellicose statements or by 0athreats or actions they think might get them more attention or might force us to 0amake a concession that we would not otherwise make," he said.

"They would be very ill-advised to move in that direction," Powell said after 0aa speech the US Asia-Pacific Council.

In the address, Powell said all three sides had presented "strong views" in 0athe talks, which were called in an effort to ease the nuclear crisis on the 0aKorean peninsula.

"Strong views were presented, the North Koreans presented their point of view 0astrongly, the Chinese did as well, as did the United States," Powell said in a 0aspeech the US Asia-Pacific Council.

"The sides will return to their capitals and assess what they heard, analyse 0aproposals that were put down by the parties and determine where we will go 0anext," Powell said.

As the second day of talks wrapped up, Pyongyang said the situation on the 0apeninsula was "so tense that a war may break out any moment due to the US 0amoves."

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