NK to seek 'nuclear nation' status at ARF
Pyongyang’s top diplomat attends ASEAN forum
By Rachel Lee
Ri Yong-ho
North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho is expected to call on the international community to accept his country as a nuclear state at the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Laos, officials here said Sunday.
Ri and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in the Laotian capital of Vientiane on the same flight Sunday afternoon.
This is the first time for Ri to attend an international meeting since taking office in May. Ri, a career diplomat, was the North’s top representative for the now-dormant six-party talks that involved the two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia.
His trip to Laos came at a time when Pyongyang is seeking to strengthen its ties with its traditional allies to counterbalance Seoul’s efforts to accelerate Pyongyang’s international isolation.
The North has stepped up its nuclear weapons program this year. It fired a Hwasong-10 intermediate range ballistic missile on June 22, after carrying out its fourth nuclear test on Jan. 4 and a series of ballistic missile tests afterwards.
This year’s ARF, the region’s largest security gathering, attracted diplomats from 27 countries, including all members of the six-party talks aimed at Pyongyang’s denuclearization as well as the 10 ASEAN-member states.
They will attend a welcoming dinner hosted by Laos Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith, Monday.
South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will also attend the forum, where both Yun and Ri are expected to make the utmost effort to deliver their stance on Pyongyang’s nuclear programs to gain support from the international community.
The two ministers will not have a separate meeting, a government official said.
However, there is speculation that Ri may hold talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.
A source said the two ministers made a reservation at the same accommodation for this visit, raising a possibility that the two diplomats could hold unofficial talks. Upon Ri’s departure to Laos Saturday, Chinese Ambassador to Pyongyang Li Jinjun was at the airport to see the North Korean minister off, according to foreign reports.
Beijing is Pyongyang’s key diplomatic partner and economic lifeline, but bilateral relations became chilly since the North’s third nuclear test in 2013. The two held talks at the ARF in Myanmar in 2014, but the same did not happen at last year’s forum in Malaysia. A North Korean delegation led by Ri Su-yong recently visited Chinese President Xi Jinping as part of the North’s efforts to mend ties.
The South Korean government said the focus of this year’s ARF is to urge the international support to better implement the U.N. Security Council's latest sanctions on Pyongyang for its denuclearization.
“The ARF will discuss some of the very complex issues surrounding terrorism, the South China Sea and North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats after its fourth nuclear test early this year,” Yun said, expressing his will to have the majority of participating countries strictly follow the U.N. Security Council’s latest sanctions on Pyongyang.
On the sidelines of the forum, Yun will hold talks with Vietnam, Myanmar and Laos _ all of which have been friendly with Pyongyang _ as part of his efforts to attract participation in sanctioning the North. High on the agenda will also be the deployment of the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery on the Korean Peninsula.
Yun plans to meet with his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday.
But because of the chair country’s traditionally close ties with Pyongyang, Seoul is likely to face challenges in reflecting its stance on the North in a chairman’s statement, the source said.