U.S. says N.Korea must abide by nuclear deal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Thursday that North Korea must live up to its commitments on taking steps toward nuclear disarmament, after talks on its nuclear program ended with no progress.

Four days of negotiations in Beijing were derailed by the issue of North Korean funds frozen at a Macau bank. China, host of the talks that also included the United States, Japan, South Korea and Russia, said the participants had agreed only to meet again.

White House spokesman Tony Snow insisted the problem was only a "technical issue in terms of funds transfers" and told reporters, "We expect them to live up to their commitments."

He said North Korea "retains an obligation" to allow in international nuclear inspectors and to close its main nuclear reactor within the next 30 days under a deal reached in February in exchange for energy aid and security pledges.

During the six-party talks, North Korea had avoided discussing the landmark agreement, which came after it stunned the world with its first nuclear test last October.

Pyongyang instead had demanded that $25 million at Macau's Banco Delta Asia first be transferred to a bank in Beijing.

"We in fact have completed the actions necessary to resolve the Banco Delta Asia issue and we hope that the mechanics of transferring the funds out of that bank are not going to slow the six-party talks," Snow said.

North Korean envoy Kim Kye-gwan left for home suddenly without talking to reporters, but a North Korean government source in Beijing said: "Our delegation went home because there was no progress on the promised transfer of the funds."

Snow said, "We've done our part ... This is not an issue of American unwillingness."

Washington said on Monday it had ended an investigation into the Macau bank, accused of harboring North Korean earnings from international crime, which had prompted Macau authorities to take over the bank and freeze the accounts.

But the money remains stuck in Macau.