Efforts underway to revive N Korea nuclear talks

Tokyo, Apr 10: Diplomatic efforts to revive six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear arms programme gathered steam in Tokyo today, but a South Korean envoy said he saw little chance that top U.S. and North Korean negotiators would meet.

Japanese media said China's envoy to the six-way talks, Wu Dawei, was meeting his Japanese counterpart on Monday morning, and a diplomatic source said Wu would meet North Korea's chief delegate, Kim Kye-gwan, later in the day.

Speculation had been mounting that Kim Kye-gwan and U.S. envoy Christopher Hill would meet on the sidelines of a private security forum in the Japanese capital and manage to create the momentum for the resumption of the six-way talks, which are aimed at preventing a nuclear crisis on the Korean peninsula.

But asked about possible contact between Kim Kye-gwan and Hill, who arrives in Tokyo later today, South Korea's chief negotiator, Chun Yung-woo, told reporters: ''As far as I see, there is not much of a chance for a North-U.S. meeting.'' Chun said, however, that there would be a three-way meeting among South Korea, the United States and Japan, as well as bilaterals, on the sidelines of a ''track-two'' private security forum bringing together officials and academics.

Susan Shirk, research director at the Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation, University of California at San Diego, which is sponsoring the forum, told the opening session: ''As a track-two body, we are not a substitute for the official six-party talks ... although we are pleased to be able to support the six-party talks with intellectual ideas and clearing up of misunderstandings.'' The six countries agreed in September that the isolated North would end all nuclear programmes in return for aid and a promise for security and better diplomatic ties.

But the last session in November aimed at devising a plan to implement that deal produced no progress.

North Korea has said it would be unreasonable to resume the six-party talks until Washington ended a crackdown on firms it suspects of aiding Pyongyang in illicit activities, such as counterfeiting U.S. currency and money laundering.

The talks involve the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, Russia and China.

REUTERS

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