Statement on the Nuclear Agreement With North Korea

I welcome the agreement reached between the United States and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in Kuala Lumpur on key issues related to implementation of the US- DPRK Agreed Framework. Achieved through close consultation with our friends and allies in the Republic of Korea and Japan, the agreement keeps North Korea's dangerous nuclear facilities frozen and confirms that the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO) will select the reactor model and prime contractor for the light-water reactor project. At the same time, KEDO has confirmed that both the reactor model and prime contractor will be South Korean.

In addressing these and other issues, today's understandings are an important step on the road toward full implementation of the US- DPRK Agreed Framework, which provides the international community with assurance against a North Korean nuclear threat and North Korea with opportunity to rejoin the community of nations. We also continue to believe that the resumption of North-South dialog is essential not only to the full implementation of the Agreed Framework but also to the continuing effort to build lasting prosperity and a stable peace on the Korean Peninsula.