U.S. not to hold direct talks with N. Korea for the time being+

TOKYO, April 19 (AP) - (Kyodo)—The United States has given Japan assurances that it will not hold one-to-one talks with North Korea for the time being, accepting Tokyo's call for prioritizing the maintenance of the six- party framework, a senior Japanese government official said Sunday. Concerns were growing in the Japanese government that the development of bilateral talks between the United States and North Korea would distract their attention from the issue of the abduction of Japanese nationals by Pyongyang, but the senior official said the assurances have allayed these fears. GA_googleFillSlot("news_story_instory"); The abduction issue has a high priority for Japan. North Korea's threat to withdraw from the six-party talks on its denuclearization led U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to hint at the possibility of direct talks with Pyongyang. But several senior U.S. officials have assured Japan that they will focus on the six-party framework rather than seeking bilateral talks with North Korea, according to the Japanese official. The six-party talks involve the two Koreas, China, the United States, Japan and Russia.

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