The official newspaper of a pro-North Korean organization in Japan reports that the six-way nuclear talks will not continue unless the U.S. agrees to lift financial sanctions on the North in bilateral negotiations slated for January 22nd in New York.

Chosun Shinbo’s Pyongyang correspondent Kim Ji-young said that the resumption of the six-party talks hinges on the removal of U.S. sanctions.

Published by the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, or Chochongryon, the newspaper accompanied the North Korean delegation at the latest round of six-party talks held in Beijing last month. It has since relayed the North's position in depth.