The top U.S. negotiator to the six-way nuclear talks says he's growing impatient with North Korea over the long-running negotiations on ending the Stalinist state's atomic weapons program.

In an interview with the Associated Press Friday, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill was quoted as saying, "We can't just sit there stalemated session after stalemated session."

The top negotiator also told the AP that he doesn't want to threaten a walkout but does want to see progress.

The United States and four other nations have been negotiating intermittently with North Korea since August 2003 with only halting progress. The talks, now in their fifth round, are currently in recess.

Hill also said he assumed that negotiations would begin again around January and that preliminary meetings might be held in South Korea.

The six-way talks involve the United States, North and South Korea, China, Japan and Russia.