DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Now we want to go to Washington, D.C. Major Garrett with some news out of the White House, President Clinton making a decision on some international travel -- Major.</s>MAJOR GARRETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Daryn. CNN has just confirmed that President Clinton will not, I repeat will not, travel to North Korea as had some in his administration hoped he might in order to sign a framework agreement with the North Korean government about restraining its missile program. CNN has confirmed through senior administration officials that those talks have not necessarily broken down, but they haven't reached an agreement the president thought was worthy of him traveling to North Korea. The issues that separate the two sides, basically disagreements about how to verify whatever the North Koreans agreed to over their missile program, and also about restraining its proliferation, its sales of materials used to create nuclear weapons to other rogue nations. Now the White House, though, is not pessimistic about the opportunities that lie ahead. They believe the next administration, President-elect Bush's administration, might be able to work with the progress that they've created so far and create a framework, one that they hope would reduce instability throughout Asia and take away one of the leading-edge threats to the United States, because North Korea's missile program right now is capable of reaching at least the far western parts of the United States. If there was an agreement with the North Koreans to restrain that program, that threat would diminish. Now the White House informed the South Korean and North Korean government this morning of this decision. It has also informed President-elect Bush's team, and that's where things stand right now -- Daryn.</s>KAGAN: Major Garrett at the White House, thank you very much.
White House Says Clinton Won't Travel to North Korea