A nuclear deal with the United States may have raised hopes that tensions on the Korean peninsula could ease soon, but rare interviews by The Associated Press with North Koreans in Pyongyang suggest deep cynicism of US intentions. The announcement of an agreement to freeze North Korea's nuclear activities in exchange for food aid was breaking news in Washington, where it was seen as a promising first step toward discussing nuclear disarmament. But in North Korea's capital, where North Koreans are taught from childhood to hate Americans, skepticism ran deep Friday. “I heard the news, but I'm not very excited,” Jong Yun Hui, 43, told the AP. She said many rounds of talks over the years have failed to result in food or much-needed energy. “I have no faith in the US,” she said. Under the deal announced Wednesday, North Korea has agreed to suspend uranium enrichment and observe a moratorium on nuclear and long-range missile tests, and to allow the return of UN inspectors expelled in 2009. In return, the US promised 240,000 metric tons of food aid, mostly for hungry children, as well as to help facilitate cultural, educational and athletic exchanges. Next week, a senior North Korean nuclear negotiator is scheduled to travel to New York to attend a security conference organized by Syracuse University in a trip seen as an early sign of warming relations under new leader Kim Jong-un even as there is widespread skepticism that the deal will hold.
