South Korea ? South Korea’s demand that North Korea renew its commitment to dismantle its nuclear weapons program dragged economic aid talks between the neighbors into a fifth day today.

The impoverished North’s priority at the talks was to receive food shipments from South Korea, but Seoul has sought to use the talks to persuade the North to implement a February promise to shut down its nuclear reactor.

Negotiations at the economic talks in Pyongyang had been scheduled to end Saturday.

“Differences were narrowed on some issues, but other issues need more discussion,” South Korea’s chief delegate, Chin Dong-soo, told reporters.

The rival countries were still working out the wording of an agreement to be issued at the end of the talks, according to pool reports.

South Korea has decided in principle to accept the North’s request for 400,000 tons of rice. But an official in the South said Seoul was seeking to delay actual shipments until after the North makes progress on the February deal, under which Pyongyang promised to close its reactor in exchange for political and economic concessions.