Pundita calling State

The (London) Times Online delivers an appropriately hard-headed analysis of North Korea's agreement to make a full declaration of its nuclear programs and disable them by the end of the year.

However, the biggest news is that the US Department of State has not confirmed or denied Pyongyang's announcement that in return for compliance, the US will lift sanctions on North Korea and remove it from their list of terror-sponsoring nations.

This opens a tactical move aimed at Iran's moderates, who've been unable to convince hardliners in their government that the US will make significant concessions if Iran pulls back from their nuclear program. The move could be in play whether or not North Korea carries out an approximation of their agreement by year's end.

11:15 AM EDT Update
Bloomberg reports that Christopher Hill, the chief U.S. negotiator on North Korea, said today that Pyongyang still had much work to do before Washington was willing to delist North Korea as a sponsor of terrorism.

"There are additional steps that need to be taken and they know this. To begin the process of removing it [from the list of terrorism sponsors] would depend on further denuclearization."

Yes, Pyongyang knows about the necessary steps but I repeat State has not confirmed or denied that they floated delisting during the latest round of negotiations with North Korea. Let's not turn this into a who-said-what argument; the important point is that with an eye to negotiations with Iran, State should not try to deny encouraging North Korea to the idea that delisting would accompany compliance.