Preceding NAPSNet Report

I. United States

1. ROK on UNSC Vote on the DPRK

Chosun Ilbo (“SEOUL OPPOSES TAKING N.KOREA TO SECURITY COUNCIL”, 2005-04-20) reported that the ROK government and ruling Uri Party came out against taking the DPRK nuclear dispute to the UN Security Council and slapping economic sanctions on the DPRK, a day after the US said it was considering the steps. They said such measures would be counterproductive. “The government and party agreed that in the current situation we could not approve referring the North Korean nuclear issue to the UN Security Council and placing economic sanctions on the North.” Uri Party policy committee chairman Kim Sung-gon.

(return to top) Reuters (“SEOUL N.KOREA SECURITY COUNCIL REFERRAL AN OPTION”, 2005-04-20) reported that Seoul is prepared to discuss with the US taking the DPRK to the UN Security Council if the DPRK goes on snubbing multilateral talks on its nuclear ambitions, the ROK’s foreign minister said. ROK Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon said “all strategic issues, including a referral to the Security Council, are matters that could be discussed with the United States as we look at the development of the situation.” (return to top) Joongang Ilbo (“MINISTRIES AT ODDS OVER TAKING NORTH TO THE U.N.”, 2005-04-20) reported that mixed messages regarding the six-party talks came out of Seoul yesterday, with ROK Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon refusing to rule out referring the DPRK nuclear issue to the UN Security Council, while Unification Ministry officials said they would oppose such a course of action. Mr. Ban said, “That is a strategic problem that will be discussed between South Korea and the United States in accordance with developments of the situation.” But also yesterday, in a meeting with Uri Party members, ROK Unification Ministry officials said the ministry opposes a move to refer the DPRK nuclear issue to the UN Security Council. (return to top)

2. Japan, US, ROK on DPRK Nuclear Issue

Jiji Press (“JAPAN, U.S., ROK TO HOLD MEETING ON N. KOREA”, 2005-04-20) reported that Japan, the US and ROK are arranging a meeting in May of their chief representatives at six-nation talks on the DPRK’s nuclear programs, it was learned Tuesday. The envisioned meeting follows the one held in Seoul in late February, attended by Kenichiro Sasae, director-general of the Japanese Foreign Ministry’s Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, Song Min Soon, deputy foreign minister of the ROK, and Christopher Hill, US ambassador to the ROK and assistant secretary of state. Hill will visit Japan next week to meet with Sasae to discuss the schedule for the next meeting. Hill will then visit the ROK, informed sources said.

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3. Russia on DPRK Nuclear Issue

The Vladivostok News (“RUSSIAN DUMA DELEGATION PLANS COOPERATION TALKS IN PYONGYANG”, 2005-04-20) reported that a delegation of the State Duma International Committee led by Committee Chairman Konstantin Kosachyov will visit Pyongyang on May 5-7 at the request of DPRK officials. According to Kosachyov the delegation would first visit Vladivostok and Nakhodka to discuss trans-border cooperation projects, involving the DPRK. In Pyongyang the delegation would also try “to encourage the resumption of six-nation negotiations on the nuclear problem,” Kosachyov was cited as saying by Interfax.

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4. Russia on Reactor Shutdown

Interfax (“N. KOREA REACTOR SHUTDOWN NOT CONFIRMED – MOSCOW”, 2005-04-20) reported that Moscow has made no comment yet on reports that a reactor at the DPRK’s Yongbyon nuclear complex has been shut down, because it has received no official report on this subject from the DPRK. “Russia has received no official statements on this matter from the North Korean side,” a Moscow-based diplomatic source told Interfax on Wednesday.

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5. ROK on DPRK Reactor Shutdown

Kyodo News (“S. KOREA WARNS N. KOREA AGAINST REPROCESSING SPENT FUEL RODS”, 2005-04-20) reported that the ROK expressed “serious concerns” about the DPRK’s possible moves to reprocess spent fuel rods from a nuclear reactor it has shut down. “We cannot but express serious concerns if the North’s suspension of the 5-megawatt reactor is aimed at reprocessing (spent fuel rods),” Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Ban Ki Moon said in a news briefing.

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6. DPRK on Reactor Shutdown

Itar-Tass (“NORTH KOREA ADMITS IT SUSPENDED OPERATION OF NUCLEAR REACTOR”, 2005-04-20) reported that the DPRK has for the first time confirmed it has suspended the operation of its nuclear reactor and intends to retrieve fuel rods from it for obtaining weapons grade plutonium, which will be used for the production of nuclear warheads and “strengthening of the deterrent forces,” against the US, DPRK’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the U.N. Hang Song Ryol said.

(return to top) Bloomberg (“JAPAN URGES NORTH KOREA TO RETURN TO SIX-COUNTRY NUCLEAR TALKS”, 2005-04-20) reported that the DPRK should “immediately” return to six-nation talks on its nuclear weapons program, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said. Hosoda, the chief government spokesman, told a regular news conference in Tokyo today that the DPRK should stop its nuclear development. (return to top)

7. US-ROK on the DPRK Nuclear Issue

Donga Ilbo (“KOREA AND U.S. DEAF TO EACH OTHER ON RESOLUTION OF NORTH KOREA NUCLEAR CRISIS”, 2005-04-20) reported that regarding the solution to the DPRK nuclear issue, the ROK and the US are crisscrossing. While the US has implied submitting the problem to the UN Security Council in case the six-party talks fail, the ROK has expressed the opposite opinion. At the party-government consultative conference yesterday, the ROK government and the Uri Party voiced clear opposition to the view of some in the US administration that the DPRK nuclear issue could be submitted to the UN Security Council. They judged that applying a hard-line DPRK policy to pressure Pyongyang could instead bring about adverse effects.

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8. ROK on OPLAN 5029

Chosun Ilbo (“SEOUL BINS N. KOREA CONTINGENCY PLAN”, 2005-04-20) reported that the Defense Ministry has essentially binned a fresh contingency plan — dubbed OPLAN 5029 — by the ROK and US military for eventualities in the DPRK including natural disasters and the collapse of the regime, an official said. “We’ve concluded that OPLAN 5029 is inappropriate as a joint operational plan for the Korean and US military because its contents are too sensitive, including possible infringement on our national sovereignty,” a senior Defense Ministry official said. “We’ve tentatively decided to suspend negotiations on the plan with the US side, effectively scrapping OPLAN 5029.”

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9. ROK on DPRK Bird Flu Outbreak

Korea Times (“SEOUL TO GIVE ANTI-BIRD FLU KITS TO NORTH KOREA”, 2005-04-20) reported that the ROK will deliver anti-bird flu kits to the DPRK through a West Sea route, the Unification Ministry said. The ministry plans to send the DPRK two quarantine vehicles and aid goods, including 20 high pressure sterilizers, 20,000 portable diagnosis kits and 18,000 kilograms of acid detergents, worth 720 million won ($710,000).

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10. DPRK on Economy and Agriculture

KCNA (“CABINET HOLDS ENLARGED PLENARY MEETING”, 2005-04-20) reported that an enlarged plenary meeting of the DPRK cabinet was held. The meeting discussed two agenda items: Reporters and speakers noted that sufficient money was provided to make a new breakthrough in the building of a great prosperous powerful nation last year, and referred to achievements made in carrying out the national economic plan for the first quarter of this year. It was specially stressed at the meeting that the second quarter is of weighty importance in carrying out the KWP’s policy of bringing about radical turn in agriculture and all efforts should be concentrated on farming.

(return to top) Reuters (“NORTH KOREA URGES FOCUS ON FARMING AND ECONOMY”, 2005-04-20) reported that the DPRK’s government wants the country to focus on agriculture in the next few months and work vigorously to revitalize the economy, the official KCNA news agency said. In a relatively rare report on an enlarged cabinet meeting, KCNA said those present had urged the people to “effect fresh miracles and innovations” in the economy, which foreign analysts say barely functions despite tentative market-style reforms in a country that cannot feed itself. The DPRK has already said agriculture is the prime focus this year. (return to top)

11. DPRK Food Aid

Joongang Ilbo (“UNOFFICIALLY, NORTH ASKS FOR 15 BILLION WON IN FARM AID”, 2005-04-20) reported that through unofficial channels, the DPRK has asked for 15 billion won ($15 million) in agricultural support from the ROK, Seoul officials said yesterday. The request was made through Juamhoe, an informal club of ROK officials who accompanied then-President Kim Dae-jung to his 2000 summit with Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang. “The North Koreans asked the South to send fertilizer and farming machinery purchased with the 15 billion won the South promised for library construction,” a ROK official said yesterday.

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12. DPRK on Human Rights

KCNA (“SPOKESMAN REJECTS “POISONOUS” UN RIGHTS RESOLUTION”, 2005-04-20) reported that a “resolution” malignantly slandering the DPRK was adopted at the 61st meeting of the UN Commission on Human Rights held in Geneva recently. In this regard, a spokesman for the DPRK Foreign Ministry released a statement today, declaring that human rights precisely mean national sovereignty and the DPRK will take a decisive measure against the continued misuse of the human rights issue as leverage for anti-DPRK hostile campaign.

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13. ROK on DPRK Defections

Associated Press (“CONTROVERSY RISES IN SOUTH KOREA OVER ‘BROKERS’ WHO ALLEGEDLY EXTORT DEFECTORS FROM NORTH”, 2005-04-20) reported that to some, they are nothing more than parasites trying to capitalize on the despair of the DPRK’s would-be defectors. Still, to many trying to flee the DPRK, they are the last ticket to freedom. At a debate in Seoul, civic activists and DPRK defectors raised concerns about alleged misdeeds by so-called brokers, who earn money by organizing defections of North Koreans desperate to get to the ROK.

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14. Abductee Issue

Korea Times (“EMBARRASSED JAPAN DROPS ABDUCTEE DNA ISSUE”, 2005-04-20) reported that after months of accusations and recriminations flying between Japan and the DPRK, Tokyo is now trying to quietly close the file on kidnap victim Megumi Yokota’s remains. The contentious bones sparked an uproar in Tokyo after DNA tests indicated they did not belong to Yokota as Pyongyang had claimed. Japan alleged that DPRK was now trying to palm it off with someone else’s remains. This outcry, however, dissolved into an embarrassed silence when science journal Nature cast serious doubts earlier this year over the reliability of the tests and revealed signs of a Japanese cover-up, according to a ROK researcher. “Due to Nature’s reports, Japan was cornered,” Kwak Jin-o, a Japan expert in the Korea Institute for National Unification, told The Korea Times. “Now it has stopped talking about it.”

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15. ROK Lobbyist in Oil-For-Food Case

The New York Times (“U.N. ENVOY UNDER SCRUTINY FOR TIES TO LOBBYIST IN OIL-FOR-FOOD CASE”, 2005-04-20) reported that the UN said that it was weighing whether a special envoy for Secretary General Kofi Annan who has admitted associating with a lobbyist charged in connection with the Iraq oil-for-food program should step aside while investigations into his role continued. Also under examination was the “appropriateness” of the envoy, Maurice F. Strong, a special adviser on the DPRK, entering into a business deal with the lobbyist, Tongsun Park, a ROK with a scandalous past, said a United Nations spokesman, Stephane Dujarric.

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16. ROK-Russian Military Cooperation

Korea Times (“SEOUL WANTS RUSSIAN WEAPONS TECHNOLOGY”, 2005-04-20) reported that the Defense Ministry said that it will ask Russia to transfer its advanced weapons technology, including an anti-aircraft guided missile system, to the ROK to repay its overdue debts to Seoul. During a four-day visit to Russia, Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung will meet his Russian counterpart Sergey Borisovich Ivanov to discuss a range of issues to boost bilateral military cooperation, including Russia’s debt reimbursement via the supply of weapons, the ministry’s spokesman Shin Hyun-don said. “Yoon will negotiate the transfer of Russian advanced weapons systems during a meeting with Ivanov, but it’s unclear if Moscow will agree on it,” said Shin.

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17. ROK UN Peace-Keeping Unit

Joongang Ilbo (“KOREA PLANS PEACE-KEEPING UNIT FOR UN”, 2005-04-20) reported that in an attempt to respond to international crises more rapidly and to answer the call of the United Nations for deployments abroad more swiftly, the ROK Defense Ministry has submitted a plan to an ad hoc committee of the National Assembly to consider the formation of a standing unit for peace-keeping operations. The aim of the standing unit would be to enable the dispatch of ROK troops abroad within two months of a crisis breaking.

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18. US on Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty

Christian Science Monitor (“US WEIGHS ITS ROLE IN WEAPONS DEVELOPMENT “, 2005-04-20) reported that as Washington worries about possible proliferation in Iran and the DPRK, the administration and lawmakers on Capitol Hill are involved in concerted debate about what actions – if any – are needed to maintain and modernize the nuclear stockpile of the US. On one level, the outcome of this debate could have a profound effect on the nature of the nation’s nuclear deterrent. On another level, it could also influence the attitudes of other nations toward US nonproliferation efforts. This could be seen as early as next month, when a Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference opens at the UN in New York.

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19. ROK-Japanese Relations

Xinhua (“S.KOREA SETS UP NEW OFFICE ON DISPUTES WITH JAPAN”, 2005-04-20) reported that the ROK government launched an office for the purpose of dealing with territory and history disputes between the ROK and Japan. ROK Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon, Education Minister Kim Jin-pyo and over 100 government officials and representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) attended the ceremony to launch the Planning Office for Correct History for Peace in Northeast Asia held in downtown Seoul, reported ROK Yonhap News Agency.

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20. Japan-Australia Trade Relations

The Associated Press (“JAPAN, AUSTRALIA TO STUDY TRADE DEAL”, 2005-04-20) reported that Australian Prime Minister John Howard, fresh from agreement with the PRC to launch free trade negotiations, said his country and Japan agreed Wednesday to study the possibility of a similar pact. Australia has been eager to secure free trade deals with countries in the region, including Japan, which is its largest export market and third-biggest source of investment. “Japan remains Australia’s best customer,” Howard said at a joint news conference with his Japanese counterpart, Junichiro Koizumi, after their meeting. “I welcome that fact that both countries through our talks today have agreed to further … enhance the economic relationship.”

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21. Japan on UNSC Expansion

Agence France Presse (“JAPAN WANTS UN REFORM THIS SUMMER DESPITE PROTESTS, US RELUCTANCE”, 2005-04-20) reported that Japan said it hoped that the United Nations would pass a resolution this summer to expand the Security Council, despite angry PRC protests against Japan’s bid and US reluctance on UN reforms. Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura, in remarks in Jakarta where he is attending a meeting of Asian and African ministers, said the UN expansion was a key part of both continents’ drives to build international partnerships. “Concerning the reform of the UN Security Council, Japan aims for the adoption of a resolution by this summer which would in essence expand the membership in both permanent and non-permanent categories,” Machimura said, adding he would raise the issue during the Jakarta talks.

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22. PRC on Sino-Japanese Relations

The New York Times (“CHINESE OFFICIAL ORDERS END TO ANTI-JAPANESE DEMONSTRATIONS”, 2005-04-20) reported that the PRC’s foreign minister called for an end to anti-Japanese protests, the first signal that the leadership may no longer welcome the sometimes violent demonstrations that have underpinned a new and more confrontational approach to Japan. The minister, Li Zhaoxing, told a meeting of the Communist Party’s propaganda department that government, military and party officials, as well as “the masses,” should stay off the streets, state media reported. “Cadres and the masses must believe in the party and the government’s ability to properly handle all issues linked to Sino-Japanese relations,” Mr. Li was quoted as saying.

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23. Japan on Sino-Japanese Relations

The New York Times (“JAPAN STEPS UP CRITICISM OF CHINA “, 2005-04-20) reported that with the PRC refusing to apologize for anti-Japanese protests, Japan’s leadership stepped up criticism of Beijing, even as Japan’s population seemed to back a more cautious stance. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi dismissed PRC’s complaints that his visits to Yasukuni Shrine, where Class A war criminals are enshrined, were an insult to the PRC and an obstacle to better relations. “Each country has its own history, tradition and different views,” he said.

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24. Sino-Japanese Summit

Reuters (“JAPAN, CHINA SEEK SUMMIT TO QUELL ROW”, 2005-04-20) reported that Japan and the PRC moved away from a war of words as the two sides sought to arrange a summit between their leaders in a bid to repair ties currently at their worst in decades. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said he saw signs that the PRC was willing to take steps toward resolving the diplomatic crisis following three weekends of often violent anti-Japanese protests throughout the PRC. But it was far from clear that Beijing felt conditions were yet right for an early summit to resolve the clash between the two East Asian powerhouses.

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25. Cross Strait Relations

Los Angeles Times (“HU, TAIWAN OPPOSITION CHIEF TO MEET”, 2005-04-20) reported that PRC President Hu Jintao has agreed to a historic meeting with the leader of Taiwan’s opposition Nationalist Party in a move that is likely to complicate already tense cross-strait relations. The meeting between Hu and Nationalist Party Chairman Lien Chan, scheduled April 29 in the PRC capital, will be the first between Nationalist and Communist leaders. By agreeing to the meeting, the PRC hopes to accomplish two objectives, analysts said. The first is to appear more reasonable and cooperative in the eyes of the international community.

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26. Sino-US Currency Dispute

Reuters (“BUSH EYES INTERIM CHINA STEP ON CURRENCY”, 2005-04-20) reported that President Bush said that the PRC was considering taking an interim step toward easing its rigid currency regime and that Washington wants action as soon as possible. An interim move could help ease rising Sino-US tensions, but Bush said the US would still keep the pressure on Beijing to “eventually” let markets set the value of the yuan currency.

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27. PRC Water Supply

Agence France Presse (“CHINA WATER SUPPLY TO REACH LIMIT IN 2030 AS POPULATION GROWS”, 2005-04-20) reported that the PRC’s water supply is likely to be stretched to the limit by 2030 as the population expands above 1.6 billion and rivers and lakes run dry or become polluted, state press said. “China’s water supply is in trouble due to the scarcity of water resources and worsening pollution after the country’s rapid economic growth of the past two decades,” Wang Hao, an official with the Global Water Partnership China, was quoted by the China Daily as saying. The PRC needs to quickly integrate its water resource management to balance urban and rural demand with the needs of the ecosystem to sustain itself, he said.

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II. CanKor

28. CanKor # 203

CANADA-KOREA ELECTRONIC INFORMATION SERVICE (“THE ODDS: AFTER KIM JONG IL”, 2005-04-20) DPRK leader Kim Jong Il was chosen to succeed his father when the latter turned 62 years of age. Although he is now himself 63 years old, a successor has yet to be named. This week’s CanKor FOCUS examines the candidates for leadership succession. www.cankor.ca

(return to top) CANADA-KOREA ELECTRONIC INFORMATION SERVICE (“ROK WILLING TO HELP DPRK ECONOMY”, 2005-04-20) ROK President Roh tells Germans that South Korea has a policy to actively support the North Korean economy once the nuclear problem has been solved. In the meantime, humanitarian aid will continue. A South Korean who defected to the DPRK in a fishing boat claimed drunkenness when he was returned by North Korea. ROK and DPRK zoos arrange to exchange animals, including Asiatic black bears, lynx, coyotes, African ponies, Siberian weasels, hippopotamuses, red kangaroos, wallabies, guanacos and llamas. www.cankor.ca (return to top) CANADA-KOREA ELECTRONIC INFORMATION SERVICE (“UNCHR PASSES DPRK RIGHTS RESOLUTION; ROK ABSTAINS”, 2005-04-20) The UN Commission on Human Rights passes a resolution critical of the DPRK (as expected), and the ROK abstains from voting (as expected). Originated by the EU, but sponsored together with Japan, this year’s resolution for the first time features a demand for the return of abductees, confirming to the DPRK that the Commission’s concerns are more political than humanitarian. www.cankor.ca (return to top) CANADA-KOREA ELECTRONIC INFORMATION SERVICE (“ROK REBUFFS US CONTINGENCY PLAN ON DPRK”, 2005-04-20) The ROK requests the USA to stop formulating a military contingency plan which foresees the US military taking wartime command of ROK forces in case of an emergency in North Korea. This is seen to infringe on ROK sovereignty and its ability to ensure peace on the Korean Peninsula. President Roh Moo-hyun tells a German newspaper that he opposes increasing pressure on the DPRK to end its nuclear ambitions, arguing that antagonizing the DPRK will only aggravate the situation. www.cankor.ca (return to top) CANADA-KOREA ELECTRONIC INFORMATION SERVICE (“YONGBYON REACTOR SHUTDOWN WORRIES USA”, 2005-04-20) On a recent visit to Pyongyang, US scholar Selig Harrison is told by senior DPRK officials that they had abandoned their offer to negotiate a “step-by-step agreement” with the USA for the dismantlement of their nuclear programme. The officials tell him of plans to unload another 8,000 plutonium fuel rods from the Yongbyon nuclear reactor, providing enough nuclear fuel to double their existing nuclear arsenal. During the past week, satellite photographs seem to show the shutdown of the reactor, raising concern that preparations are proceeding toward further reprocessing for military use. www.cankor.ca (return to top)