Koreas to Resume Talks on Energy Aid for Denuclearization
By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
South and North Korean officials will meet at the truce village of Panmunjeom, Friday, to discuss economic and energy aid to the North in accordance with the agreement made at the six-party talks last year in return for the communist state's disablement of its nuclear programs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Wednesday.
North Korea proposed holding the energy talks under the six-party talks aimed at abolishing the communist regime's nuclear programs, ministry officials said.
The move comes amid a stalemate over the verification of the North's declaration of its nuclear materials and programs in June. Pyongyang suspended disabling its Yongbyon nuclear reactor last month to protest the U.S. delay in removing it from a terrorism blacklist. North Korea has since then rejected holding any talks with South Korea and the United States.
Seoul officials expect the meeting to serve as an opportunity to gauge the authenticity of the North's recent moves to rebuild the Yongbyon facility, and a swirl of reports on North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's health problems.
Kim's absence last week at a parade marking the 60th anniversary of North Korea's founding fueled speculation over his health. Reports said Kim was recovering from a stroke.
``If North Korea wants to further increase its threat level, it would not respond to the energy talks. We assess this as a positive sign that the six-party talks are moving forward slowly but surely,'' a ministry official said, asking to remain anonymous.
At the latest six-party forum in July, the United States, South Korea, China and Russia agreed to provide the remaining 950,000 tons of heavy fuel oil or its equivalent in aid to North Korea, in exchange for Pyongyang verifiably s declaring all of its nuclear programs.
The energy aid is part of the Feb. 13 disarmament-for-assistance pact signed by the six-party members also involving Japan. Under the accord, the North was to receive one million tons of heavy fuel oil or its equivalent in aid and other political concessions, including its removal from the U.S. list of terrorism sponsoring states.
Japan, however, has refused to participate in the aid program, citing the unresolved issue of North Korea's abduction of Japanese nationals.
Hwang Joon-kook, head of the foreign ministry's bureau dealing with the nuclear issue, will lead the South's delegation to the talks, while Hyon Hak-bong, deputy chief of the U.S. affairs bureau of the North Korean foreign ministry, will represent the North.
Pyongyang submitted an inventory of its nuclear materials and programs on June 24, prompting U.S. President George W. Bush to give the minimum 45-day notice to Congress of his intent to remove the impoverished state from the list of terrorism sponsors. That deadline passed Aug. 11.
Washington insists it will remove North Korea from the list only after the establishment of a comprehensive verification mechanism conforming to ``international standards,'' including intrusive inspections of North Korean nuclear facilities, soil sampling and interviews with key scientists involved in the programs.
The United States also wants to verify details of the North's suspected uranium enrichment program and nuclear proliferation activities.
North Korea has opposed the U.S. proposal, arguing it would infringe upon its sovereignty. Following its announcement to suspend the disablement of the Yongbyon nuclear plant, the North is believed to have taken steps to restore the plutonium-producing facility.
Last Saturday, U.S. officials were quoted as saying that North Koreans had begun removing International Atomic Energy Agency seals from parts of the nuclear facilities that had been disabled.
The disablement of the Yongbyon compound is the key part of the so-called Feb. 13 agreement under which North Korea is required to declare and abandon all its nuclear programs in return for economic and political concessions including removal from the terror list.
The de-listing is crucial for the North since currently it is prevented from receiving foreign aid and loans. Pyongyang was put on the list in 1988 after its agents blew up a South Korean passenger plane, killing all 115 people aboard.