WASHINGTON, Jan 11: The United States on Friday snubbed North Korea for saying that it was leaving the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) and warned that such disrespect to an important international agreement cannot go “undealt with”.

Despite the strong condemnation, the United States is still trying to convince the North Korea not to reactivate its nuclear weapons programme.

“The non-proliferation treaty is an important international agreement, and this kind of disrespect for such an agreement cannot go undealt with,” U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell told reporters in Washington.

He said the United States would continue to work with the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, to “deal with these very difficult and important issues”.

Last month, North Korea removed monitoring devices and U.N. inspectors from its nuclear facilities and said it was reactivating its nuclear weapons programme.

The move caused an international outcry and Washington launched a campaign to persuade Pyongyang to give up its nuclear ambitions.

Earlier on Saturday the United States, Japan and South Korea issued a joint statement, assuring North Korea that Washington did not intend to use force to resolve the dispute.

Following the joint statement, the North Korean delegation at the U.N. headquarters in New York contacted New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson for discussing various options for resolving the crisis.

The talks in Santa Fe, New Mexico, began on Thursday evening and continued on Friday as well, with both the sides keeping their cards close to their chests.

Powell said he has spoken to Richardson three times since on Thursday night, when the North Korean delegation arrived in Santa Fe for talks.

He said the North Koreans had approached Richardson and asked for a meeting because they had some ideas they wanted to put on the table. “Governor Richardson contacted us and I returned his calls and we discussed the matter and thought that it would be useful for him to hear whatever ideas the North Koreans had,” said Powell.

“In order to not deprive ourselves of any useful information, we suggested to Governor Richardson, who has a past relationship with North Korea, it would be okay for him to go ahead, and we made it possible for the North Koreans to see him.”

Powell said Richardson would call him after the meeting to give him a full report. “We will take that report into account as we move forward to see whether or not any new elements have been introduced into the equation.”

The secretary said the meeting was “a one-time shot for the governor” because “he is not an emissary ... nor does he intend to be an envoy in this matter”.