U.S. invites top N.K. official for nuclear talks

BALI, Indonesia (AP) -- The United States has invited a top North Korean official to New York to talk about the next steps necessary to resume the long-stalled six-nation discussions aimed at ridding the North of its nuclear programs.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced Sunday that North Korean Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan will meet this week with U.S. officials to explore his country's commitment to return to the so-called Six Party Talks and take concrete steps toward disarmament.

Clinton made the announcement as she was leaving Indonesia, where nuclear negotiators from North and South Korea met for the first time since disarmament talks collapsed in 2008 when Pyongyang walked out to protest international criticism of a prohibited long-range rocket launch.