aricbcool
09-12-2005, 23:18
North Korea Nuke Talks to Resume
Monday, September 12, 2005
BEIJING — The United States and North Korea were at odds over the communist nation's demands for peaceful atomic power, as officials gathered in Beijing on Tuesday for talks on ending the North's nuclear weapons program.
Participants in the six-nation talks are working on a statement of principles laying the groundwork for stopping the North's nuclear programs. The latest round of talks broke for a recess early last month after a record 13 days of talks failed to yield an agreement.
But sticking point has emerged over the North's demands for a civilian nuclear program — something Washington has strongly resisted, saying the communist state's past record proves it can't be trusted with any nuclear program.
On Tuesday, the head of North Korea's delegation said his country won't tolerate any obstructions to its right to a peaceful nuclear program, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported.
North Korea has the right to "peaceful nuclear activity," it quoted Kim Gye Gwan as saying before leaving Pyongyang on Tuesday morning to attend the talks in Beijing. "This right is neither awarded nor needs to be approved by others."
"We have this right, and the more important thing is that we should use this right," it quoted Kim as adding. "If the United States tries to set obstacle to (North Korea's) using this right, we can utterly not accept that."
The main U.S. envoy to the talks said the key resolving the standoff lies with Pyongyang.
"We know we are ready to sit down and negotiate and try to finish this thing. But the question is what (North Korea) has done during that one month," Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill said in the South Korean capital on his way to the Beijing talks. Hill met Monday evening in Seoul with South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young, who is headed to Pyongyang this week for Cabinet-level talks between the two Koreas separate from the nuclear forum.
On Friday, Hill reiterated a set of measures — including energy aid offered by South Korea — that he said would make it unnecessary for North Korea "to go and develop additional capacity, especially through such very difficult and extremely expensive projects as nuclear energy."
The North "has had trouble keeping peaceful programs peaceful," Hill said.
The U.S. diplomat said he would be able to gauge where this week's arms talks were headed after meeting with the North Koreans.
Hill emphasized Monday that the main issue remained getting a broad agreement on a joint statement on eliminating nuclear weapons from the peninsula.
"I really do hope we can move rapidly and move toward an agreement on these goals and principles," he said.
Analysts say the North's insistence on a peaceful nuclear program at the negotiations isn't a tactic aimed at stalling the disarmament talks, but a real concern of the regime as it tries to revive its economy.
North Korea has chronic energy shortages and blackouts, even in its capital. As of 2003, the North was able to generate less than 30 percent of its total capacity of 7.8 million kilowatts of electricity, according to South Korean government statistics.
"Economic development has been the regime's top priority since the mid-1990s," said Paik Hak-soon at the Sejong Institute in Seoul. "It's in a situation where it has to secure nuclear energy for economic recovery and development."
The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, or NPT, allows countries following its provisions to get assistance with peaceful nuclear programs, and the North has said it could rejoin the treaty if the current standoff is resolved. That would be a crucial step toward bringing the North under international monitoring of its nuclear activities.
Washington's opposition to a civilian nuclear program in the North means it would "not have any incentives whatsoever to return to the NPT," Paik warned.
Washington is seeking to portray a united front with South Korea, Japan, China and Russia at the six-nation talks. But several of those nations seem inclined to compromise.
Monday, September 12, 2005
BEIJING — The United States and North Korea were at odds over the communist nation's demands for peaceful atomic power, as officials gathered in Beijing on Tuesday for talks on ending the North's nuclear weapons program.
Participants in the six-nation talks are working on a statement of principles laying the groundwork for stopping the North's nuclear programs. The latest round of talks broke for a recess early last month after a record 13 days of talks failed to yield an agreement.
But sticking point has emerged over the North's demands for a civilian nuclear program — something Washington has strongly resisted, saying the communist state's past record proves it can't be trusted with any nuclear program.
On Tuesday, the head of North Korea's delegation said his country won't tolerate any obstructions to its right to a peaceful nuclear program, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported.
North Korea has the right to "peaceful nuclear activity," it quoted Kim Gye Gwan as saying before leaving Pyongyang on Tuesday morning to attend the talks in Beijing. "This right is neither awarded nor needs to be approved by others."
"We have this right, and the more important thing is that we should use this right," it quoted Kim as adding. "If the United States tries to set obstacle to (North Korea's) using this right, we can utterly not accept that."
The main U.S. envoy to the talks said the key resolving the standoff lies with Pyongyang.
"We know we are ready to sit down and negotiate and try to finish this thing. But the question is what (North Korea) has done during that one month," Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill said in the South Korean capital on his way to the Beijing talks. Hill met Monday evening in Seoul with South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young, who is headed to Pyongyang this week for Cabinet-level talks between the two Koreas separate from the nuclear forum.
On Friday, Hill reiterated a set of measures — including energy aid offered by South Korea — that he said would make it unnecessary for North Korea "to go and develop additional capacity, especially through such very difficult and extremely expensive projects as nuclear energy."
The North "has had trouble keeping peaceful programs peaceful," Hill said.
The U.S. diplomat said he would be able to gauge where this week's arms talks were headed after meeting with the North Koreans.
Hill emphasized Monday that the main issue remained getting a broad agreement on a joint statement on eliminating nuclear weapons from the peninsula.
"I really do hope we can move rapidly and move toward an agreement on these goals and principles," he said.
Analysts say the North's insistence on a peaceful nuclear program at the negotiations isn't a tactic aimed at stalling the disarmament talks, but a real concern of the regime as it tries to revive its economy.
North Korea has chronic energy shortages and blackouts, even in its capital. As of 2003, the North was able to generate less than 30 percent of its total capacity of 7.8 million kilowatts of electricity, according to South Korean government statistics.
"Economic development has been the regime's top priority since the mid-1990s," said Paik Hak-soon at the Sejong Institute in Seoul. "It's in a situation where it has to secure nuclear energy for economic recovery and development."
The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, or NPT, allows countries following its provisions to get assistance with peaceful nuclear programs, and the North has said it could rejoin the treaty if the current standoff is resolved. That would be a crucial step toward bringing the North under international monitoring of its nuclear activities.
Washington's opposition to a civilian nuclear program in the North means it would "not have any incentives whatsoever to return to the NPT," Paik warned.
Washington is seeking to portray a united front with South Korea, Japan, China and Russia at the six-nation talks. But several of those nations seem inclined to compromise.