By Na Jeong-ju
Staff Reporter
Prime Minister Han Seung-soo expressed regret Wednesday over North Korea's demand for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to remove seals and surveillance equipment from its Yongbyon nuclear reactor.
``It is regrettable that North Korea has demanded that U.N. nuclear inspectors remove seals and surveillance equipment from the Yongbyon reactor,'' Han said in an interview with Bloomberg Television in New York. ``We will urge the North to resume efforts to disable its nuclear facilities and completely abandon its nuclear program. South Korea will keep trying to achieve the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through the framework of the six-party talks.''
Han arrived in New York Tuesday to attend the 63rd session of the U.N. General Assembly meeting today. He will give a keynote address at the session on the latest developments regarding the North Korean denuclearization effort and the Lee Myung-bak administration's official stance on the issue.
The prime minister called for China to play a more active role in persuading North Korea to return to the negotiating table.
``As the chair of the six-party talks, China has played a very important and constructive role so far,'' he said. ``We hope that China will play another important role in trying to bring North Korea back to the table to settle this issue.''
The IAEA said Pyongyang had asked the U.N. nuclear watchdog to remove the seals at Yongbyon to ``enable them to carry out tests at the reprocessing plant, which they say will not involve nuclear material.''
Han also had an interview with Reuters, in which he called for the international community to remain patient with North Korea.
``It is not a good idea to overreact to North Korea's moves. We should deal with the regime very carefully,'' he said.
Han had lunch with U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon at Ban's residence in Manhattan.
Ban expressed gratitude for Korea's efforts to increase its contributions to the United Nations and its bold moves to become a ``Low Carbon, Green Growth'' society in line with U.N. guidelines.
``I hope the Korean government will continue to play a leading role in global efforts to reduce pollution and create a greener world,'' Ban said.
In response, Han reaffirmed that Korea will remain an active contributor to U.N. programs to maintain peace in conflict countries and help economic development in poor nations.