Seoul, Washington discuss North plans
Published: 21 Sep. 2009, 04:42
By Ser Myo-ja
Seoul and Washington will engage in a series of consultations to coordinate their North Korea policy this week following the remarks by Kim Jong-il that his nation is open to nuclear talks.
South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will hold a bilateral meeting in New York today, Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said.
The top foreign policy makers of the two countries will discuss ways to restart the stalled six-party talks aimed at eliminating Pyongyang’s nuclear arms program. In April, the North declared that it will never participate again in the six-party negotiations.
Yu departed for New York yesterday, accompanying President Lee Myung-bak, who will attend the UN General Assembly Wednesday.
Wi Sung-lac, South Korea’s top nuclear envoy, also departed yesterday for the U.S. to meet with key officials there, including Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg. After accompanying South Korean officials for the UN meetings, Wi will travel to Washington and meet with State Department and White House officials starting Wednesday for four days.
North Korea’s state media said the country has dispatched a delegation led by Vice Foreign Minister Pak Kil-yon to the UN meeting.
Ahead of his departure, Wi told Yonhap News that he will have consultation with U.S. officials about the latest development in the North Korean nuclear crisis. “Although the timing of U.S.-North Korea bilateral talks has not been decided, we will exchange views with Washington in advance,” Wi was quoted as saying.
He said the focus will be how to effectively use carrots and sticks to persuade North Korea to return to the talks. “We need to bring about productive talks while not giving a wrong signal [to the North],” he said.
While Seoul and Washington intensify their diplomatic efforts to synchronize North Korea strategies, it remains unclear what Kim Jong-il has in mind when he hinted at rejoining the stalled talks. On Friday, Kim told visiting Chinese presidential envoy Dai Bingguo that his country will continue adhering to the goal of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and is willing to resolve the relevant problems through bilateral and multilateral talks, without specifically saying “six-nation talks.”
Following the report, U.S. State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said, “We, of course, remain committed to engage North Korea bilaterally, but only in the six-party context, only if it helps lead to a resumption of that six-party context.”
By Ser Myo-ja [[email protected]]
Seoul and Washington will engage in a series of consultations to coordinate their North Korea policy this week following the remarks by Kim Jong-il that his nation is open to nuclear talks.
South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will hold a bilateral meeting in New York today, Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said.
The top foreign policy makers of the two countries will discuss ways to restart the stalled six-party talks aimed at eliminating Pyongyang’s nuclear arms program. In April, the North declared that it will never participate again in the six-party negotiations.
Yu departed for New York yesterday, accompanying President Lee Myung-bak, who will attend the UN General Assembly Wednesday.
Wi Sung-lac, South Korea’s top nuclear envoy, also departed yesterday for the U.S. to meet with key officials there, including Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg. After accompanying South Korean officials for the UN meetings, Wi will travel to Washington and meet with State Department and White House officials starting Wednesday for four days.
North Korea’s state media said the country has dispatched a delegation led by Vice Foreign Minister Pak Kil-yon to the UN meeting.
Ahead of his departure, Wi told Yonhap News that he will have consultation with U.S. officials about the latest development in the North Korean nuclear crisis. “Although the timing of U.S.-North Korea bilateral talks has not been decided, we will exchange views with Washington in advance,” Wi was quoted as saying.
He said the focus will be how to effectively use carrots and sticks to persuade North Korea to return to the talks. “We need to bring about productive talks while not giving a wrong signal [to the North],” he said.
While Seoul and Washington intensify their diplomatic efforts to synchronize North Korea strategies, it remains unclear what Kim Jong-il has in mind when he hinted at rejoining the stalled talks. On Friday, Kim told visiting Chinese presidential envoy Dai Bingguo that his country will continue adhering to the goal of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and is willing to resolve the relevant problems through bilateral and multilateral talks, without specifically saying “six-nation talks.”
Following the report, U.S. State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said, “We, of course, remain committed to engage North Korea bilaterally, but only in the six-party context, only if it helps lead to a resumption of that six-party context.”
By Ser Myo-ja [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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