White House: N. Korea wants to resume talks

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House indicated Tuesday it would take North Korea up on an offer to resume talks with the communist nation about its missile program and other security matters.

North Korea made the offer "to begin talks with the United States" through Pyongyang's U.N. mission, according to a a statement released by the White House press secretary.

"The United States will work to determine the timing and other details in the coming days," the White House statement said.

Monday, senior administration officials told CNN the long-term goal of such talks would be to achieve normal diplomatic relations.

North Korea's willingness to hold discussion, U.S. officials said, came after after months of silence by the reclusive North Korean regime of Kim Jong-Il. Recently, it has responded positively to U.S. overtures to resume talks.

During the final months of the Clinton administration, relations seemed to be on the fast track to normalization. Then-Secretary of State of State Madeleine Albright paid a visit to Pyongyang in October 2000 with the expectation President Clinton might visit, but time ran out before a deal could be struck.

The United States hopes to persuade the North to give up its missile program in exchange for other compensation. The Bush administration, as did the Clinton administration, maintains that North Korea is one of the world's biggest proliferators of missiles and missile technology.

In January, President Bush said North Korea was part of an "axis of evil" -- with Iraq and Iran also on that list.

-- State Department Correspondent Andrea Koppel, Producer Elise Labott, and Senior White House Correspondent John King contributed to this report