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Six-party talks on North Korea¡¯s nuclear program resumed in Beijing on Wednesday with a bilateral meeting between the main actors after a round-table session that brought together North and South Korea, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia. The fresh round has the uphill task of sorting out the when and how of an accord whereby Pyongyang agreed to give up its nuclear arms program in return for economic assistance and security guarantees.
The meeting mainly went over familiar ground. The U.S. affirmed that it will only provide North Korea with a civilian light-water reactor it is demanding once Pyongyang restores trust, returns to the Non-Proliferation Treaty and readmits IAEA inspectors. The North again insisted things must happen the other way round. Its chief negotiator Kim Kye-gwan also slammed U.S. President George W. Bush for again labeling North Korean leader Kim Jong-il a ¡°tyrant¡± this week, saying that went against the spirit of the joint statement agreed in the last round.
South Korean and Chinese negotiators urged a compromise, saying Washington and Pyongyang should each take trust-building steps. Thus the North could shut down its graphite reactor in Yongbyon, while U.S. chief negotiator Christopher Hill could visit Pyongyang and Washington could establish a liaison office there.
Representatives have decided on what they hope will be a more effective procedure for the new round, the fifth. Chief negotiators will first draw up a general framework, and working-level or expert groups will then fine-tune the agreements. Thus the first three days before the talks break for the APEC summit will be taken up with position statements on North Korea¡¯s nuclear dismantlement and normalization of diplomatic relation between the U.S and North Korea.
¡°There will be no real issues dealt with this time,¡± a high-ranking South Korean delegate lamented. ¡°The bag I take home will be heavier than the one I brought here.¡±
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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