Muted hope for Kelly trip to the North

James Kelly, a senior U.S. State Department official, visits North Korea on Thursday, presumably to resume talks to resolve issues including Pyeongyang's alleged development of nuclear weapons, but watchers here are cautious. They see Washington's attitude in entering the talks as pessimistic.

The two countries have confronted each other sharply on many sensitive issues, and U.S. President George W. Bush labeled the North as part of an "axis of evil." But hopes for the Kelly visit rose after Pyeongyang's series of reforms and recent cooperation with Japan on longstanding disputed issues.

Mr. Kelly warned Wednesday against hasty optimism. Meeting South Korea's Foreign Minister Choi Sung-hong on the eve of his visit to Pyeongyang, Mr. Kelly said his aim is to deliver Washington's stance on the North's development and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and to listen to what the North has to say. The two sides will assess each other through this visit, rather than reaching an agreement on any issue.

Reporters here asked Mr. Kelly, the assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, if his visit to Pyeongyang would produce a breakthrough. He described his visit as a beginning of a process, hinting that Washington expects to do no more than sound out the North on broad issues.

Washington is seen as reserved about the Kelly visit because President Bush's "axis of evil" remark was only in January; therefore rapid progress might seem contradictory. Observers also said Washington probably wants to concentrate its diplomatic attention on Iraq.

Some pointed that the Bush administration may have wanted to postpone the North Korea issue until the next South Korean administration.

There have been few preparatory meetings between Washington and Pyeongyang, watchers noted. "These talks are different from the North Korea-Japan meeting, which had a year of secret preparations," a South Korean official said.

by Oh Young-hwan, Oh Day-young