S. Korea's chief nuclear negotiator to meet IAEA head

By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, Nov. 24 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's chief nuclear envoy Kim Sook will hold a
meeting later this week with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director
Mohamed ElBaradei to explain Seoul's position on the North Korean nuclear issue,
officials here said Monday.
Kim plans to visit the IAEA's headquarters in Vienna on Friday on his way to an
international seminar on North Korea to be held in Como, Italy, they said.
"The envoy will use the meeting to explain South Korea's stance on the issue of
verifying North Korea's nuclear program in advance of a new round of six-way
talks (to resume Dec. 8)," a foreign ministry official said, asking not to be
named.
The IAEA, the United Nation's nuclear watchdog, is said to be dissatisfied with
what will likely be its limited "consultant" role in the verification process.
In his meeting with South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kwon Jong-rak in October,
ElBaradei expressed doubts over the effectiveness of a verification regime
without IAEA's leadership.
lcd@yna.co.kr
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