N Korea nuke stance 'a tactic'

2003-09-04 11:46

Seoul - North Korea's threat to build up its nuclear deterrent force is a pressure tactic aimed at giving it an edge in future nuclear crisis talks, says South Korea's unification minister.

Jeong Se-hyun, South Korea's top policymaker on relations with the north, said: "The conflicting message is a sort of pressure tactic outside the negotiating table ahead of further talks."

After inconclusive six-nation talks in Beijing last week, North Korea said it had no option but to build up its nuclear arsenal faced with Washington's refusal to drop its "hostile" policy.

North Korea described the talks as "useless" and said it had no interest in further negotiations.

However, Jeong said North Korea eventually would return to the negotiating table, according to a report by Yonhap news agency.

In Washington, United States secretary of state Colin Powell urged North Korea to drop its posturing and prepare to engage in serious dialogue.

"We hope the North Koreans will understand the seriousness of our position, our proposals and will respond in a serious way and not with these kinds of rhetorical threats."

Powell had just had talks in the US capital with visiting South Korean counterpart Yoon Young-Kwan

North Korea used the three-day talks in Beijing - which brought together the two Koreas, China, Russia, Japan and the United States - to demand a non-aggression pact from Washington as well as economic and other benefits, saying it would answer to US security concerns later.

Warned it might test a nuclear weapon

Delegates agreed to meet for further talks, but were unable to name a date or venue.

After the talks, North Korea complained bitterly that Washington refused to respond to its "reasonable and comprehensive proposal to denuclearise the Korean peninsula".

Powell said that during the talks North Korea had warned it could test a nuclear weapon.

"That's what they said, I don't know if it was a promise or just a statement," said Powell, taking issue with Russia's delegate to the talks, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov, who said no such threat was uttered.

He vowed the United States would "stay the course" and look for a diplomatic way out of the nuclear showdown that erupted in October.

But he said the process was "not helped by threats and truculent statements that are designed to try to frighten the international community and try to frighten us".

"We will not be frightened, nor will we be caused by such threats to take actions that we do not believe are in our interests or in the interests of our partners."

Powell later accompanied Yoon to the White House for talks on the nuclear crisis with President George W Bush.

"He had a very, very good conversation with President Bush for a few moments before we came back here for conversations with the minister and his delegation," Powell told reporters.

Yoon was also due to meet Bush's national security advisor, Condoleezza Rice and deputy secretary of state Paul Wolfowitz during his visit, which is due to end on Friday, said South Korean officials.

In Seoul, Jeong said he expected no escalaton of the 11-month nuclear crisis from North Korea, despite its threat to launch a nuclear test.

"The north would not do things that can be defined as escalating the situation," he was quoted as saying by Yonhap.

In an effort to promote a new round of talks, South Korea's national security chief Ra Jong-Yil will visit China from Tuesday to Friday.

- AFP