The United States may have already directly conveyed to North Korea its stance on Pyongyang’s boycott of the nuclear talks and its expulsion of international nuclear inspectors.

During a news briefing Thursday, State Department spokesman Robert Wood said that there may have been communications with the North on the issues. He neglected to elaborate any further.

Wood’s comment came in response to a question posed about whether Washington has approached the North since it announced that it would expel international inspectors and U.S. experts from the Yongbyon nuclear facility.

Wood’s remarks suggest that a dialogue channel is being operated between Washington and Pyongyang despite heightened tensions between the two sides following the North’s rocket launch on April fifth.

Meanwhile, Wood added that there are currently four Americans at Yongbyon who should be leaving the communist state within the next several days.