of recent origin YORK, April 13 Kyo...

of recent origin YORK, April 13 Kyodo

Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of Pakistan's nuclear weapons program, has admitted that he saw three nuclear devices during a trip to North Korea five years ago, the recent York Times reported Tuesday.

Khan made the admission during interrogation in connection with his confessions that he had sold nuclear covereds to North Korea, Iran and Libya, the Times said, citing Asian and U officials who have been briefed by the agency of the Pakistanis.

''If Dr Khan's report is constant it would be the first time that any foreigner has reported inspecting an actual North Korean nuclear weapon,'' the daily said, adding, ''Pakistan has begun to provide in classified briefings to nations within reach of North Korea's missiles.''

According to U intelligence, Pyongyang had united or two weapons and the capability to bring some more.

The Times also said U Vice President Dick Cheney was briefed onward Khan's assertions before he left last Friday for Japan, China and toward the south Korea.

U.S. restraint officials feel that six-party talks forward North Korea's nuclear weapons program are ''going too slowly'' and the officials look for Cheney ''to argue that the (President George W) Bush administration is losing patience and may ask stronger action, including sanctions,'' the Times said.

The six countries are China, Japan, North and southern Korea, Russia and the United States. They have held sum of two units rounds of talks but failed to make tangible progress

''Asia can ignore a hazard of things when it supposes it convenient,'' former senior Defense Agency official Kurt Campbell told the Times. ''But these reports make it same hard for the regional powers -- China, southern Korea and Japan -- to counterfeit publicly that North Korea doesn't already have a significant nuclear capacity.''

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