US, China bid for new Korea talks

[Ironduke]

US, China bid for new Korea talks

The United States and China have said they will work together to restart six-party talks on North Korea's controversial nuclear programme.
US President George W Bush and Chinese President Hu Jintao said in Bangkok they would co-operate on advancing the Beijing round of talks which ended in August without success.

Mr Bush earlier ruled out signing a non-aggression pact with North Korea - one of Pyongyang's conditions for taking part in talks on abandoning its nuclear weapons programme.

However, Mr Bush said it might be possible to address the North's security concerns "within the context of the talks" - which also involve Japan, South Korea and Russia.

The two presidents met on Sunday ahead of the Apec summit of Pacific Rim nations.

Their talks also covered trade, the war on terrorism and China's successful space launch earlier this week.

'No invasion'

The US president said perhaps there were other ways to convince Pyongyang that the US would not attack, but he did not elaborate.

"I've said as plainly as I can say that we have no intention of invading North Korea," Mr Bush said.

"And I've also said as plainly as I can say that we expect North Korea to get rid of her nuclear weapons ambitions," he said.

Mr Hu said China would continue to strengthen its communications and consultations with relevant partners to promote the Beijing talks.

Earlier this week, North Korea threatened to "physically display" its nuclear deterrent.

Some analysts interpreted the statement as a hint that it would test a nuclear bomb - a move that would dramatically intensify the year-long crisis.

But the US and South Korea dismissed Pyongyang's statement as mere sabre-rattling.

Closer allies

The US president is on the third leg of a six-nation Asian tour, in which he is seeking more support in the US-led war on terror.

He has designated Thailand a non-Nato ally, making it easier for it to buy US military equipment.

Thailand's new status with the US means it will gain significant benefits in the area of foreign aid and defence co-operation. The US recently bestowed the same status on the Philippines.

Other countries to have this security relationship with the US include Japan, Australia, Israel, Egypt, South Korea and Argentina.

Mr Bush is expected to use the Apec forum, which takes place on Monday and Tuesday, to urge Asian leaders to help rebuild Iraq.

He arrived in Bangkok from Manila, where on Saturday he told the Philippine Congress that a free and stable Iraq would "serve the cause of peace".

But some Apec ministers meeting ahead of the summit have expressed reservations about the US push to put the war on terror on an equal footing with boosting prosperity.

After Thailand, Mr Bush will also visit Singapore, Indonesia and Australia.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3205136.stm

[Ironduke]

Bush proposes alternative to N. Korea standoff

Bush proposes alternative to N. Korea standoff

Seeks multilateral agreement to halt nuclear weapons program

Sunday, October 19, 2003 Posted: 5:46 PM EDT (2146 GMT)

BANGKOK, Thailand (CNN) -- President Bush on Sunday restated his opposition to a U.S. non-aggression pact with North Korea, while proposing multilateral security assurances if Pyongyang pledges to abandon its nuclear weapons program.

North Korea has demanded bilateral talks with the United States and refused to consider giving up its nuclear program without a non-aggression treaty with the United States.

"We will not have a treaty," the president told reporters. "That's off the table. Perhaps there are other ways we can look at -- to say exactly what I said publicly on paper, with our partners' consent."

Bush addressed the issue after a meeting with Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra -- and pitched the idea later to Chinese President Hu Jintao, who will play a key role in the strategy for resuming dialogue with North Korea.

"He told President Hu that he's very committed to the six-party talks in which we are engaged, in which Beijing has been such an important player," National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice said on ABC's "This Week."

"... The president made clear to President Hu that he is prepared to explore ways within the six-party context to address the security concerns that the North Koreans have put on the table," Rice said.

The other partners in the six-party dialogue are Japan, South Korea, China and Russia.

North Korea would not have to completely dismantle its nuclear weapons program before receiving the security assurances, a senior U.S. official said. The official said any security assurances or other measures that could be negotiated with North Korea would be "conditioned on verifiable progress" toward ending and dismantling its nuclear weapons program -- but not conditioned on finishing implementation of any agreement.

The Bush administration's efforts in talks to convince North Korea to halt reprocessing of nuclear fuel rods have been stymied in part because of Pyongyang's demands for a non-aggression pact with the U.S., a tactic the White House says is virtually nuclear blackmail.

But U.S. officials said Bush hoped to reach agreement with the Chinese president on an approach under which, in exchange for a verifiable end to the North Korea weapons program, the United States and all of its partners in the talks would agree in writing that their shared goal was a peaceful, non-nuclear Korean peninsula and that no parties to the talks had any hostile intentions toward or plans to attack the North.

Senior administration officials say their offer is not a formal treaty, but a less formal written agreement.

"North Korea is not gaining anything by being possessors of nuclear weapons," Secretary of State Colin Powell said on CNN's "Late Edition." "It doesn't help an economy that's in need, it doesn't feed anyone, and it doesn't scare anyone."

He said the United States is open to being a part of a broader agreement involving other Asian nations if North Korea abandons its nuclear ambitions and agrees to strict verification.

Bush arrived in Bangkok on Saturday, ahead of Monday's APEC summit, being held in the Thai capital amid tight security.

Leaders from Russia, China, Australia and 17 other nations will join Bush at the meeting in Bangkok. Trade and security are expected to dominate the talks, according to White House officials. One challenge for Bush will be winning more support for his policies toward Iraq and North Korea.

After the APEC meeting, Bush is scheduled to make brief visits to Singapore, Indonesia and Australia, before returning home on Friday.

Bush kicked off his eight-day, six-nation tour of Asia when he arrived in Tokyo, Japan, on Friday. There, he met with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to personally thank the Asian leader for pledging $1.5 billion in reconstruction aid for Iraq and lobbying U.N. Security Council members to support a new U.S.-backed resolution on Iraq.

On Saturday in Manila, Philippines, Bush became the first U.S. president to address the Philippine Congress since Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1960. In his speech, he praised the Philippine government in its fight against terrorism and for supporting the U.S.-led war in Iraq.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapc...pec/index.html

[Ironduke]

N. Korea reconsidering Bush offer

SEOUL, South Korea (CNN) -- North Korea has indicated it could consider U.S. President George W. Bush's offer of written security guarantees for the communist state to end tensions over its nuclear weapons development.

North Korea had initially rejected the proposal made earlier this week by the U.S. president while he attended the summit of Asia-Pacific leaders in Bangkok.

"We are ready to consider Bush's remarks on the 'written assurances of non-aggression' if they are based on the intention to co-exist with the DPRK and aimed to play a positive role in realizing the proposal for a package solution on the principle of simultaneous actions," a North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman said in a statement reported by KCNA, the North Korean state news service.

North Korea previously insisted it needed a formal nonagression treaty signed by the U.S. before it would back away from its nuclear program.

"This stance is prompted by the expectation that the DPRK and the U.S. can build confidence and lay a foundation of co-existence in the course of solving issues one after another on the principle of simultaneous actions," the latest statement said.

The unnamed North Korean spokesman said it was "premature" to talk about whether his country would return to six-nation talks aimed at ending the year-old nuclear standoff.

But Saturday's comments brightened prospects for restarting discussions.

Representatives of the United States, China, Russia, Japan and South and North Korea held talks in Beijing in August, but they failed to set a date for another round of talks.

Washington is demanding North Korea shut down its nuclear program immediately. Pyongyang wants security guarantees and aid for its hungry population and decrepit economy.

The nuclear dispute flared last October, when U.S. officials said North Korea admitted having a secret nuclear weapons program in violation of international agreements.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapc...ear/index.html

[Ironduke]

N Korea 'to resume nuclear talks'

N Korea 'to resume nuclear talks'

North Korea has agreed "in principle" to further talks on its controversial nuclear programme, Chinese and North Korean media have reported.
The announcement appeared to be a result of Chinese pressure on the North to resume the talks process, which has been stalled since August.

It came after one of China's most senior leaders, Wu Bangguo, met with North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il.

"China and [North Korea] agreed in principle here Thursday to continue the process of six-party talks," the official Xinhua news agency said in a dispatch from Pyongyang.

Beijing hosted six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear programme in August, but these ended inconclusively, with Pyongyang vowing to press ahead with its nuclear plans.

However, China's foreign ministry and state media said on Thursday that Mr Wu had "repeatedly" told North Korean leaders that talks were the only avenue to resolve the crisis.

There had been mounting hopes of a breakthrough after North Korea responded positively this week to an apparent concession by the US and its Asian allies.

Pyongyang said it was prepared to consider a US offer of some kind of security guarantee in return for an end to its nuclear programme.

Talks goal

North Korean radio said on Thursday that it would take part in the talks if they were aimed at bringing about a solution based on "the principle of simultaneous actions" - in other words, that both sides meet each other's demands at the same time.

In addition to a guarantee that Washington will not attack, North Korea demands include economic aid and the opening of a formal diplomatic relationship.

The question of timing - who makes their concession first - is a major sticking point between the two sides.

China also emphasised the need to resolve the concerns of North Korea and the United States simultaneously, Xinhua news agency said.

The other issue that has held up diplomatic progress is the nature of the agreement.

Previously North Korea had insisted only on a formal non-aggression treaty which would have required congressional approval and could have seriously tied Washington's hands.

It now appears that Pyongyang is prepared to consider a less formal pact.

'Agreement by letter'

Unconfirmed Japanese media reports on Thursday said North Korea had now offered to settle for a letter of assurance on its security from US President George W Bush.

North Korea is already believed to have one or two nuclear bombs and recently said it had extracted plutonium from 8,000 spent nuclear fuel rods to build more.

The nuclear crisis began last October when US officials said North Korea had admitted to having a secret nuclear programme, in defiance of a 1994 agreement.

China, one of North Korea's few allies, has played a key role in mediating between Pyongyang and Washington.

Chinese state television reported on Thursday that Kim Jong-il, who rarely makes trips abroad, had accepted Chinese President Hu Jintao's invitation to visit China again.

Mr Kim said he would do so "at his convenience," CCTV said.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3227293.stm