NAPSNet Daily Report Thursday, November 4th, 2004

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NAPSNet Daily Report Thursday, November 4th, 2004

NAPSNet Daily Report Thursday, November 4th, 2004

I. United States

Preceding NAPSNet Report

I. United States

1. ROK on DPRK Nuclear Talks

The Associated Press (“SOUTH KOREA SAYS NORTH KOREA IS LIKELY TO REJOIN NUCLEAR TALKS”, 2004-11-04) reported that the DPRK is likely to return to six-nation talks on its nuclear weapons development now that the US election is over, the ROK’s foreign minister said Thursday. In a report to the National Assembly’s unification and foreign affairs committee, Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon also said the ROK plans to persuade the DPRK to make a “strategic decision” that will set the stage for a breakthrough at the next round of talks.

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2. PRC on DPRK Nuclear Talks

Xinhua News (“FM SPOKESWOMAN: CHINA TO KEEP CONTACTS WITH US FOR SIX-PARTY TALKS”, 2004-11-04) reported that the PRC will continue to keep contacts with the US for a new round of six-party talks on the Korean Peninsular nuclear issue or a working group meeting, after the just-concluded US presidential election. The spokeswoman said the PRC has kept close contacts with all parties including the US. The PRC hopes a new round of six-party talks or a working group meeting would be held as soon as possible.

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3. Japan on DPRK Nuclear Talks

Kyodo News (“JAPAN HOPES TALKS ON N KOREA NUKES HAPPENS THIS YR”, 2004-11-04) reported that a senior Japanese Foreign Ministry official expressed hope Thursday that the next six-party talks on the DPRK’s nuclear ambitions, stalled since Pyongyang refused to meet in September, would take place by the end of this year, the Kyodo news agency reported.

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4. US – DPRK Relations

Asia Pulse (“BUSH’S REELECTION PRESAGES GREATER CONFLICT WITH N. KOREA”, 2004-11-04) reported that US President George W. Bush’s reelection will lead to a bigger struggle between the DPRK and the US over the nuclear issue, while pushing Seoul into a dilemma, analysts forecast Wednesday. Washington’s tougher stance toward Pyongyang will deal a blow to Seoul, which has sought reconciliation with Pyongyang through economic assistance, experts said.

(return to top) Yonhap (“N KOREA SILENT ON US PRESIDENT’S RE-ELECTION – SOUTH AGENCY”, 2004-11-04) reported that the DPRK has yet to respond to the victory of incumbent George W. Bush in the US presidential election, which experts said was an indication of its disappointment in the result. Without reporting Bush’s re-election, the DPRK’s state-run Korean Central News Agency called Thursday for an anti-US and anti-war struggle by espousing “Songun,” the DPRK’s military-first policy. (return to top)

5. US – ROK Relations

The Associated Press (“SOUTH KOREA WELCOMES BUSH’S RE-ELECTION, PLEDGES TO WORK CLOSELY TO RESOLVE NUCLEAR DISPUTE”, 2004-11-04) reported that ROK on Thursday welcomed the re-election of US President George W. Bush, pledging to work more closely with his administration to peacefully resolve a dispute over the DPRK’s nuclear weapons program. “The government hopes that the second term of the Bush administration will continue to cooperate with its allies to secure peace and prosperity in the world including on the Korean Peninsula,” the presidential office said in a statement.

(return to top) Asia Pulse (“SEOUL-WASHINGTON ALLIANCE MAY SUFFER OVER N. KOREAN NUKE ISSUE”, 2004-11-04) reported that ROK-US relations would continue to move ahead after George W. Bush’s reelection, but the alliance could face serious cracks over the DPRK, experts said Thursday. The DPRK has often been a major source of contention between the allies, and the issue is expected to be a key factor that would shape their relations during the Bush administration’s second term as well. (return to top)

6. Inter – Korean Relations

Asia Pulse (“BUSH VICTORY LIKELY TO KEEP INTER-KOREAN RELATIONS IN STATUS QUO”, 2004-11-04) reported that with the victory of US President George W. Bush in the presidential election, inter-Korean relations appear likely to remain in the status quo for the time being. “If the United States takes the initiative in the six-way talks, it could reduce South Korea’s room for maneuvering in creating conditions for the second inter-Korean summit and dispatch of an envoy to the North,” Kim Tae-hyo, a researcher at the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security, said.

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7. Inter – Korean Summit

Chosun Ilbo (“URI PARTY CHAIRMAN PROMISES TO PUSH INTRA-KOREAN SUMMIT “, 2004-11-04) reported that ruling Uri Party chairman Lee Bu-young said at a meeting with foreign business people in the ROK that his party would make efforts for the early opening of another intra-Korean summit. A second intra-Korean summit is necessary in order to create a political environment to attract foreign investment, Lee said.

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8. EU Aid to the DPRK

Agence France-Presse (“NORTH KOREA RECEIVES 8 MILLION DOLLARS IN EU AID”, 2004-11-04) reported that the European Union’s executive arm Wednesday released nearly eight million dollars in aid for the DPRK. The European Commission said the aid of 6.2 million euros (7.9 million dollars) would fund clean water and sanitation to the benefit of about 200,000 people in the economically shaky state. The money will be channeled through UN agencies, the Red Cross and aid groups, the commission said in a statement.

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9. DPRK Human Rights

The Japan Times (“JAPAN URGED TO PUT HUMAN RIGHTS ON AGENDA FOR TALKS WITH NORTH”, 2004-11-04) reported that a visiting American human rights specialist has urged Japan to put the DPRK’s human rights record on its agenda for the upcoming normalization talks scheduled with the reclusive state. “The Japanese government will be in a strong position,” consultant David Hawk said at a symposium Tuesday organized by Japanese lawyers and the US Committee for Human Rights in the DPRK, a nongovernmental organization.

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10. DPRK Defection

Donga Ilbo (“”A SON OF NORTH’S SENIOR OFFICIAL APPEARS TO DEFECT TO THE U.S.” “, 2004-11-04) reported that Oh Se-ook, the eldest son of Oh Geuk-ryeol, 73 years old, the four-star general and the operational director of the DPRK’s Workers’ Party, has likely defected to the US, the NHK of Japan reported on November 4. The broadcaster, citing ROK intelligence sources, said Oh escaped the DPRK from the port of Cheongjin in a boat late last year and defected to the US via Japan.

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11. DPRK Diplomat Accident

Itar-Tass (“TWO NORTH KOREA DIPLOMATS DIE IN CAR ACCIDENT N RUSSIA”, 2004-11-04) reported that two DPRK diplomats having the consular rank and a guest of the DPRK Consulate General in Nakhodka have died in a head-on car collision on the Nakhodka-Vladivostok highway. According to traffic police of the Partizansk district, a car with diplomatic number plates drove in the oncoming lane and collided with a car with several Russian citizens.

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12. Jenkins Case

Los Angeles Times (“GI RECEIVES A 30-DAY SENTENCE FOR DESERTION”, 2004-11-04) reported that Charles Robert Jenkins, the GI who deserted to the DPRK, was given a 30-day sentence Wednesday by a military judge after testifying to four decades of harrowing conditions under the DPRK that were widely acknowledged to be worse than a prison term.

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13. Japan on Jenkins Case

Washington Post (“U.S. DESERTER TOOK PLEA BARGAIN; LENIENCY FOR SOLDIER WHO FLED TO N. KOREA APPEASES JAPAN”, 2004-11-04) reported that a US Army sergeant’s decision to plead guilty on Wednesday to deserting to the DPRK in 1965 was part of a plea bargain in a Cold War-era case that effectively settled a dispute between Japan and the US. The Japanese government had intervened on behalf of Jenkins, whose wife, Hitomi Soga, is a Japanese citizen who was abducted by DPRK spies in 1978.

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14. ROK on IAEA Inspection

Korea Times (“SEOUL SEEKS FAIR IAEA VERDICT “, 2004-11-04) reported that ROK on Wednesday expressed its hope the UN nuclear agency will deal with its past nuclear experiments in a fair manner so the surrounding controversy can be brought to an end as early as possible. “We have been fully complying with inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA),” Foreign Affairs-Trade Minister Ban Ki-moon said. “We hope the U.N. nuclear watchdog will fairly and promptly address the case.”

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15. ROK Energy Supply

Joongang Ilbo (“KOREA READY TO BEGIN PRODUCING NATURAL GAS AT DEEP-SEA DRILL SITE”, 2004-11-04) reported that the Korea National Oil Corp. said yesterday that it is starting commercial production of liquefied natural gas today after a successful four-month trial. The deep-sea drilling location is about 85 kilometers (52.8 miles) southeast off the coast of Ulsan, in the East Sea (Sea of Japan).

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16. ROK Foreign Affairs

Korea Times (“ROH TO ATTEND ASEAN+3 SUMMIT, VISIT EUROPE”, 2004-11-04) reported that President Roh Moo-hyun will attend an annual summit of Asian leaders in Vientiane, Laos, on Nov. 29 to discuss the DPRK nuclear problem and other regional issues with the neighboring countries, Chong Wa Dae said Thursday. He will also make successive visits to Britain, Poland and France, after the ASEAN+3, involving leaders of 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and three Northeast Asian countries – the ROK, the PRC and Japan.

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17. ROK Foreign Investment

Kyodo News (“CONSTRUCTION BEGINS NEXT WEEK FOR SOUTH KOREA’S FIRST SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONE”, 2004-11-04) reported that ROK and US companies will start building this country’s first special economic zone next week on tidal flats where US troops landed during the Korean war half a century ago. New Songdo City, due for completion by 2006, will provide tax incentives and offer international schools and hospitals to lure foreign investors, its developers said.

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18. Japan Quake

Kyodo News (“NUCLEAR REACTOR AUTOMATICALLY SHUTS DOWN DUE TO QUAKE IN JAPAN”, 2004-11-04) reported that an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.2 shook Niigata Prefecture on Thursday 4 November morning in areas hit by the devastating quakes of 23 October, but no injuries were reported. Tokyo Electric Power C. said the No 7 reactor at its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in the prefecture automatically shut down after the 8.57 a.m. local time quake.

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19. PRC on Cross Strait Relations

The Associated Press (“CHINA URGES U.S. TO TAKE “CONCRETE” STEPS TO BACK UP POSITION ON TAIWAN INDEPENDENCE”, 2004-11-04) reported that the US should take “concrete” steps to back its stand that it doesn’t support independence for Tawain, the PRC said Thursday following the re-election of US President George W. Bush, calling the issue key to smooth relations. “The smooth development of China-US relations requires that the US side properly handles the Taiwan question,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said.

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20. PRC Weapons Sales

The Associated Press (“CHINA DEFENDS ITS WEAPONS REGULATIONS IN FACE OF U.S. CRITICISM”, 2004-11-04) reported that the PRC on Thursday defended its handling of weapon sales after the chief US envoy for arms control accused it of selling weapons of mass destruction. US Undersecretary of State John Bolton said in a speech last week in Tokyo that the PRC “engages in outward proliferation.”

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21. Vanuatu and Cross Strait Relations

The Associated Press (“VANUATU DENIES GRANTING DIPLOMATIC RECOGNITION TO TAIWAN”, 2004-11-04) reported that doubts were raised Thursday over Taiwan’s claim that it had established formal diplomatic relations with Vanuatu, after a government spokesman in the South Pacific nation said newly forged ties were limited to trade and other economic issues.

(return to top) Agence France-Presse (“TAIWAN DEFENDS NEWLY FORGED DIPLOMATIC TIES WITH VANUATU”, 2004-11-04) reported that Taiwan defended its newly forged diplomatic ties with the tiny Pacific state of Vanuatu and denied that the island’s Prime Minister Serge Vohor had acted against his government’s wishes. “Some local newspapers said Vohor had not secured the advance approval of Vanuatu’s cabinet before he travelled to Taiwan. The reports are not true,” said Deputy Foreign Minister Kau Ying-mao Kau. (return to top) Agence France-Presse (“BEIJING INSISTS VANUATU STILL RECOGNIZES CHINA”, 2004-11-04) reported that the PRC insisted the tiny Pacific island of Vanuatu would not be severing ties with Beijing and establishing diplomatic relations with Taiwan, contrary to announcements by Taipei. (return to top)

22. PRC Domestic Unrest

Washington Post (“CIVIL UNREST CHALLENGES CHINA’S PARTY LEADERSHIP”, 2004-11-04) reported that as police battled to suppress deadly ethnic clashes last week in central PRC, tens of thousands of rice farmers fighting a dam project staged a huge protest in the western part of the country. The same day, authorities crushed a strike involving 7,000 textile workers. The string of disturbances, described by local journalists, witnesses and participants, highlights the daily challenge that civil unrest now poses to the ruling Communist Party.

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23. Sino – Japanese Gas Dispute

Kyodo News (“JAPAN SEEKS MORE DATA FROM CHINA IN NEXT TALKS ON GAS DISPUTE”, 2004-11-04) reported that Japan told the PRC on Thursday that it expects more information about the latter’s gas exploration projects in the East China Sea if the two sides are to hold a second round of talks on the dispute, a Japanese official said.

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24. Sino – Iranian Relations

The Associated Press (“CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTER TO DISCUSS IRAN’S NUCLEAR PROGRAM DURING VISIT TO TEHRAN”, 2004-11-04) reported that PRC Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing will visit Iran this weekend and discuss the country’s nuclear program, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said Thursday. During the two-day visit, Li will “touch upon” Iran’s uranium enrichment program, which is under scrutiny by the International Atomic Energy Agency, said spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue.

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25. PRC Currency Reform

Reuters (“CHINA: BASIC WORK DONE FOR YUAN REFORM”, 2004-11-04) reported that the PRC’s top financial officials pledged to make the yuan currency more flexible, saying fundamental preparations had been made but stressing the need to avoid volatility, state media said on Thursday. The remarks intensified market speculation Beijing may hasten steps to adopt a market-oriented currency and allow the yuan, pegged against the dollar around 8.28 since the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, to rise in value.

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