Rice says goal is to ease N Korean tensions

Elmendorf Air Force Base (Alaska), Oct 18: US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, traveling to meet major Asian powers, said North Korea would deepen its isolation if it conducted a second nuclear test and insisted Washington had no plans to invade the country.

''We have no desire to see this crisis escalate. In fact, it is our goal to see a de-escalation of this, despite North Korea's actions,'' Rice yesterday said before a refueling stop in Alaska on the way to Asia where she will seek ways to implement UN sanctions against the reclusive communist state.

''We are concerned about further action by the North Koreans but further actions by the North Koreans will only deepen their isolation, which is pretty deep right now,'' Rice said. Her five-day trip will include Tokyo, Beijing, Seoul and Moscow.

Earlier yesterday, North Korea denounced UN sanctions as a declaration of war, while officials in South Korea said the North might be preparing a new test after last week's underground nuclear test.

Suspicious after the US invasion of Iraq, some Asian nations are concerned the United States will push for regime change in North Korea, causing the country to implode and sending a flood of refugees to China and elsewhere.

Pressed about such concerns, Rice said, ''The United States does not intend to, desire to, wish to, attack or invade North Korea.'' She said the U.S. goal was the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula but added it would be a ''wonderful thing'' if there could be an opening up of North Korea where people lived in ''appalling conditions.'' CHINA CONCERNS China is worried how UN financial and weapons sanctions against North Korea will be applied and is concerned inspections on the high seas of North Korean vessels will exacerbate tensions.

Rice said the United States was not looking to inspect every North Korean ship. ''It is not some random thing -- you really are in many ways information-driven and information-sharing is going to be a very important part of this.'' But a senior State Department official traveling with Rice said states had a legal obligation to give ''very close scrutiny'' to North Korean cargo coming into ports, road border crossings and airports.

Rice also aims to reassure Japan and South Korea not to embark on an Asian arms race in response to North Korea building up a nuclear arsenal -- a concern Vice President Dick Cheney warned of two years ago.

''That is why it is extremely important to go out and reaffirm, and reaffirm strongly U.S. defense commitments to Japan and to South Korea,'' said Rice. ''The vice president was right, something like this has the potential (of creating an arms race) but we have a lot of means to prevent that from happening.'' Asked if there were any circumstances in which the United States would approve of Japan having a nuclear weapons program, Rice said she did not see how that would help, adding Japan had made clear that was not its plan.

Reuters