By Arshad Mohammed
Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. pointman on North Korea on Wednesday left open the possibility Pyongyang could be removed from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism before it completely gives up its nuclear programs.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Chris Hill was speaking ahead of weekend talks with North Korean officials in Geneva that are expected to focus on how North Korea will carry out its commitments to abandon all its nuclear programs.

North Korea, which tested a nuclear device in October, must disable its nuclear facilities and give a complete declaration of all nuclear programs under a February 13 “six-party” agreement by the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States.

Hill said it was possible that North Korea, which U.S. officials believe may have enough nuclear fuel to make more than eight or nine atomic weapons, could begin to disable some nuclear facilities before it provides a full accounting.

The weekend talks, in which Hill is expected to meet North Korea’s top nuclear negotiator Kim Gye-gwan, are technically about normalizing relations between the two countries, which fought on opposite sides of the 1950-1953 Korean War.

Under the February 13 deal, Washington agreed to start the process of removing Pyongyang from its list of state sponsors of terrorism. Being on the list subjects North Korea to a ban on arms-related sales, prohibitions on some types of U.S. aid and U.S. opposition to it receiving World Bank and other loans.

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