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A high-level South Korean government official said that during the next round of six-party talks set to open in Beijing on Feb. 25, Seoul will present a "concrete solution plan" that North Korea will evaluate positively.
The official said Friday that if North Korea freezes its nuclear program as a step to total dismantlement, the U.S., South Korea, and Japan can begin to show the North "through actions" about the compensation it demands. This is interpreted as meaning that if the North freezes its nuclear program with total dismantlement its eventual aim, the U.S., South Korea, and Japan will consider North Korea's requests for the removal of sanctions, its dropping from the State Department's list of states supporting terrorism, and energy assistance. The officials said "About the compensation problem, we put a lot of energy into persuading the Americans," suggesting that a harmonization of views with the United States has already taken place.
Concerning the highly enriched uranium program that the North denies having, the official hinted that South Korea's position on the matter might differ from that of the United States.
The official said, "During the three or four days of the second round of talks, so we can concretely come to an agreement about the problem of freezing [the nuclear program] versus compensation, we'll form working-level groups, and try to regularize the talks." He also said he has some idea concerning the timing of a third round of talks.
Meanwhile, "Come Back Home," an civic group for families of those abducted to the North, and five other local and foreign North Korean human rights groups visited the Foreign Ministry on Friday and met with Jo Tae-yong, the head of the ministry's diplomatic team for the North Korean nuclear issue. They asked Jo to officially raise the issue of South Korean abductees in the North during the six-party talks.
Choe Seong-yong, the head of "Come Back Home," said to Jo, "Japan has decided to strongly raise the issue of abductions during the talks, the U.S. says it will back them on this, but why doesn't our government, which rules a country where 480 people were kidnapped by the North, have any plans [to raise the issue at the talks]?" He requested that the South Korean negotiating team present the issue of abductions in its opening address on the first day of talks.
Choe and others also requested that the South use the talks to bring up refugees, human rights, and request an end to crimes against humanity in the North, such as human testing on political prisioners,
(Lee Ha-won, may2@chosun.com )
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