I. United States

1. DPRK on Six Party Talks

Agence France Presse (“N. KOREA SAYS SIX-WAY TALKS OFF UNTIL AT LEAST MID-SEPTEMBER”, 2005-08-29) reported that the DPRK indicated Monday that six party talks would not resume before mid-September and blamed military drills between the US and the ROK. DPRK Foreign Minister Nam-Sun Paek said the resumption of the talks “depends on the United States, actually. The United States should abolish all the conditions that have compelled us to make the nuclear weapons.”

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2. DPRK, Russia on Six Party Talks

Russian News & Information Agency Novosti (“UPDATE: RUSSIAN, NORTH KOREAN DIPLOMATS DISCUSS SIX-NATION TALKS”, 2005-08-26) reported that Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Alekseyev met with the DPRK’s Ambassador to Moscow Pak Ui Chun on Friday. “The sides discussed the continuation of the fourth round of six-nation talks and developments in the resolution of the Korean nuclear problem,” the Foreign Ministry said, giving no further details.

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3. PRC on Six Party Talks

Agence France Presse (“CHINESE DIPLOMAT IN N.KOREA FOR TALKS ON NUCLEAR NEGOTIATIONS”, 2005-08-27) reported that PRC Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei arrived in Pyongyang in hopes of setting a date for the next round of six party talks. Wu had named September 2 as a possible date for the resumption of talks while speaking in Tokyo on Thursday, but several countries, including the PRC, reiterated Friday that no exact date had been agreed. Wu will be in the DPRK until Tuesday to exchange views on bilateral relations and the nuclear talks, the Xinhua news agency reported.

(return to top) Reuters (“CHINA WANTS N. KOREA TALKS AS SECURITY FORUM-PAPER”, 2005-08-28) reported that, according to the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun, the PRC had suggested that Six Party Talks evolve into a permanent regional security forum. Citing sources close to the talks, Asahi states that Beijing had put forward the suggestion at the fourth round of negotiations adjourned earlier this month. In its draft of a joint statement, the PRC proposed that the Korean peninsula should be nuclear weapons-free, that the US and Japan should normalize diplomatic ties with the DPRK, that the DPRK should receive energy assistance, and that the talks become an ongoing regional forum. The US, ROK, and Japan have agreed to the draft, the newspaper said. (return to top) The Associated Press (“CHINA: NATIONS CLOSE TO N. KOREA STATEMENT”, 2005-08-28) reported that the PRC’s ambassador to the US said Sunday that he believed envoys from the six nations are very close to agreeing on a joint statement that could eventually lead to the DPRK abandoning its nuclear weapons program. When asked whether the PRC, with its close ties to Pyongyang, should take a larger role in persuading the DPRK to stop its nuclear program, Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong said the six nations needed to work together. “It’s not just what China should do alone,” Zhou said, “I think this is something we need to work together, and without that I don’t think we will be able to accomplish it.” (return to top)

4. Japan on Six Party Talks

Reuters (“JAPAN SEES NO SIGN OF U.S.- N.KOREA NUCLEAR DEAL”, 2005-08-29) reported that there were no signs of the US and DPRK reaching agreement on key issues in their stand-off over Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions and the timing of the next round of talks is uncertain, Japan’s top government spokesman, Hiroyuki Hosoda, told reporters on Monday. “We cannot say at this stage whether there are prospects of the six party talks resuming,” Hosoda said.

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5. Thailand on Six Party Talks

Chosun Ilbo (“N.KOREA ‘NOT READY’ FOR TALKS THIS WEEK : THAI FM”, 2005-08-28) reported that the DPRK is not ready to come back to six party talks this week because they sense a lack of trust, according to a statement made Sunday by Thai Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon. After a meeting with DPRK Foreign Minister Paek Nam-sun in Pyongyang, Kantathi said, “The North Korean foreign minister told me what he had in mind, what had caused North Korea not to be able to participate in the six-party talks scheduled for Monday.”

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6. US-DPRK Relations

Yonhap News (“LEADING DEMOCRATS PRESS U.S. TO DEAL MORE STRONGLY WITH N.K., IRAN”, 2005-08-26) reported that US Democratic congressional leaders pushed the Bush administration to use a “big stick” to deal with nuclear threats from nations like the DPRK and Iran. House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, together with Harry Reid, Senate Democratic leader, wrote in USA Today’s Thursday edition that actions “are the only things that count” when it comes to confronting terrorists.

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7. DPRK on US Human Rights Envoy

CNN News (“NK WARNING ON HUMAN RIGHTS ENVOY “, 2005-08-27) reported that the DPRK demanded that the US rescind its recent appointment of a special envoy on human rights in the DPRK, warning the new position could adversely affect ongoing international efforts to end the DPRK’s nuclear weapons program. On Saturday, the DPRK said the appointment of a human rights envoy “is an act of bad omen that hurts our generous and flexible efforts to resolve the nuclear problem and generates a whirlwind in the path of six party talks,” demanding the envoy be “removed immediately.”

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8. US Military Plan for the DPRK

The New York Times (“U.S. BANKS ON TECHNOLOGY IN REVISED MILITARY PLAN FOR A POSSIBLE NORTH KOREAN CONFLICT”, 2005-08-29) reported that US commanders are making significant changes in their plans in the event of a military conflict with the DPRK. The reworking of the war plans incorporates advances in technology and combat skills that were successfully executed during the rush to Baghdad in 2003. The shift in strategy is being undertaken even as the US cuts the number of troops by one-third and begins moving the remaining soldiers farther from the demilitarized zone. “We have precision-guided munitions,” said General Leon J. LaPorte, “We have better weapons systems. We have better communications. So we are able to not only accomplish our current mission, but increase our capabilities – at the same time reducing the number of personnel it takes to do this.”

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9. DPRK-PRC Treaty of Cooperation

Chosun Ilbo (“NEW CHINA-N.KOREA TREATY LIKELY ABOUT DEFECTORS”, 2005-08-29) reported that the PRC and DPRK have signed a treaty of cooperation in civil and criminal affairs to deal with the growing legal issues between the two countries. The PRC Government has yet to disclose the contents of the agreement, but it is likely to include guidelines for dealing with refugees and forced repatriation. An official with the ROK Embassy in the PRC, Park Heung-shik said, “Because this agreement is different from a criminal extradition treaty, it cannot be used as direct base for all refugee repatriation issues. By way of this accord, both countries can be on the same page as to how to deal with defectors who commit crimes or refugee traffickers.”

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10. KEDO Project

The Associated Press (“N. KOREA REACTOR BUILDING CHIEF QUITS”, 2005-08-28) reported that the US executive director of the international consortium set up to build two nuclear power plants for the DPRK as part of a deal to shut down its weapons program is stepping down this week. Charles Kartman, who guided the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO) for four years, is departing Thursday. Kartman has long advocated dialogue with the DPRK to resolve the nuclear impasse. No successor for Kartman has been named so far by KEDO’s board, which represents the US, ROK, Japan and the EU.

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11. Inter-Korean Relations

Chosun Ilbo (“OPPOSITION DELEGATES RETURN FROM N.KOREA”, 2005-08-28) reported a delegation from the minor opposition Democratic Labor Party (DLP) led by party Chairwoman Kim Hye-kyong returned to Seoul on Saturday following a five-day visit to the DPRK at the invitation of the Social Democratic Party. The delegation said the two sides agreed to regularize exchanges, with the Social Democratic Party leadership visiting Seoul after another large-scale DLP delegation visits the DPRK early next year. The parties debated how the spirit of the 2000 Joint Declaration should be put into practice.

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12. Mt. Kumgang Visitor Quota

Chosun Ilbo (“MIFFED N.KOREA CUTS MT.KUMGANG VISITOR QUOTA”, 2005-08-29) reported that the DPRK has told Hyundai Asan it will halve the number of ROK tourists allowed to visit the DPRK’s Mt.Kumgang to 600 a day. The move apparently comes in protest at the ROK’s company’s decision to oust its vice chairman Kim Un-kyu despite objections from Pyongyang. An internal inspection had found Kim guilty of corruption, and he resigned at a board meeting on August 18. Hyundai Asan is worried that Pyongyang’s decision could derail its DPRK tourism projects.

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13. Inter-Korean Maritime Relations

The Korea Times (“NK RETURNS FISHING BOATS”, 2005-08-28) reported that, on Sunday, the DPRK returned three ROK fishing vessels, captured by the DPRK’s patrol boats earlier in the day after they allegedly entered its waters in the East Sea, according to local maritime authorities. The 20-ton squid fishing vessels with 13 crewmen on board were seized sometime between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m., when they were working in waters west of Songjin in the DPRK’s Hamgyong Province. The boats were released around 11:30 a.m. and officers from the Sokcho maritime police and other authorities plan to inquire of the 13 fishermen how the vessels came to cross the sea border.

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14. ROK Tourists Visit Kaesong

The Associated Press (“S. KOREA TOURISTS VISIT N. KOREAN CITY”, 2005-08-26) reported that some 500 tourists from the ROK visited historic sites in Kaesong on a pilot trip organized by Hyundai Asan. The one-day trip Friday included stops at major historical sites in Kaesong. “I can’t put it in words how I feel,” said 78-year-old Park Hyun-jin, who visited the city where he was born for the first time in more than 50 years. “Things have certainly changed since the last time I was here,” he added, referring to new apartment buildings built in the central district.

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15. WFP on DPRK Food Shortage

Yonhap News (“RATION BENEFICIARIES DROP BY ONE MILLION IN N.K.: WFP REPORT”, 2005-08-26) reported that the number of food ration recipients in the DPRK dropped by nearly a million in a week, according to a report from the UN World Food Program. The report, dated Friday, said the number of beneficiaries could further drop another million in the next couple of months unless new contributions arrive in near future.

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16. DPRK-Thai Relations

Yonhap News (“N.K. FM MEETS THAI COUNTERPART ON ENHANCING BILATERAL TIES: KCNA”, 2005-08-27) reported that the DPRK’s Foreign Minister Paek Nam-sun met with his Thai counterpart Surakiat Sathirathai in Pyongyang Saturday. A bilateral “agreement on negotiations and cooperation” was signed, the Korean Central News Agency reported.

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17. UNSC Expansion

Kyodo (“G-4 NOT TO SEEK VOTE ON UNSC RESOLUTION BEFORE SEPT. SUMMIT”, 2005-08-29) reported that the so-called group of four countries has abandoned efforts to seek adoption of its resolution on UN Security Council reform before a special UN summit in September, G-4 diplomats said. The diplomats said ambassadors from Japan, Brazil, Germany and India told UN General Assembly President Jean Ping that the four countries will seek a resolution to the issue by the end of this year.

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18. Japan Elections

Reuters (“JAPAN’S PRIME MINISTER MAKES PITCH FOR POSTAL REFORM”, 2005-08-29) reported that Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi presented his case for postal privatization in a televised debate on Monday, saying selling off Japan Post was the key to further structural reform and revitalizing the nation’s economy. Opposition leaders countered that the September 11 vote was more than just a referendum on Koizumi’s long-cherished goal and criticized his record on reform.

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19. US-Japan Alliance

Agence France-Presse (“JAPANESE POLLS MAY IMPACT US-JAPAN ALLIANCE”, 2005-08-29) reported that the US-Japan alliance may not be a key concern among Japanese voters when they go to polls on September 11 but the elections could impact America’s relations with its top Asian ally, analysts say. For one thing, Japan’s main opposition Democratic Party of Japan has vowed to pull back Japanese troops from Iraq if it ousts the Liberal Democratic Party of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. In addition, the DPJ’s foreign policy puts relations with Asian nations, particularly neighbors PRC and ROK, ahead of improving Tokyo’s half a century partnership with the US. The party also wants a swift review of US military bases in Japan.

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20. Sino-US Relations

Bloomberg News (“CHINA SEEKS TO IMPROVE U.S. TIES”, 2005-08-29) reported that the PRC last month hired Patton Boggs, a well-known lobbying firm in Washington, for $22,000 a month to advise it on how to deal with Congress – the biggest such contract the nation has ever signed. At a summit meeting on trade in July, the PRC pledged to step up prosecutions of pirates of copyrighted movies and music. And after many complaints by US lawmakers, the PRC agreed to raise the value of its currency and negotiate caps on textile exports.

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21. PRC Media Control

The New York Times (“MEDIA EXECUTIVES COURT CHINA, BUT STILL RUN INTO OBSTACLES”, 2005-08-29) reported that the long-held optimism of Western media companies about venturing into the PRC market has suffered several setbacks recently. At the beginning of the month, as part of an effort to tighten control over cultural products, the PRC’s Propaganda Department, the Ministry of Culture and four other regulators published new rules that further restricted what foreign filmmakers and television companies can do in the PRC. Last week, the News Corporation’s plan for a new television channel to be co-owned with a PRC company was quashed by the government.

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22. PRC Human Rights

Agence France-Presse (“UN RIGHTS CHIEF DUE IN CHINA TO PUSH FOR RATIFICATION OF CONVENTION”, 2005-08-29) reported that UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour is due in the PRC to push Beijing to ratify the UN Convention on Civil and Political Rights, but activists see little reason for optimism. Arbour will meet President Hu Jintao and other senior officials during a five-day mission centering on the PRC’s compliance with UN recommendations on improving its human rights record, the commission said in a statement.

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23. PRC AIDS Issue

The Associated Press (“U.S., CHINA AIDS RESEARCHERS SIGN PACT “, 2005-08-29) reported that the PRC health officials plan to announce an AIDS cooperation partnership with a US institute, a measure that takes aim at combating what health officials fear will be a tenfold surge in HIV infection in the PRC over the next five years. The partnership between the PRC Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the University of Maryland’s Institute of Human Virology covers collaboration on clinical trials, technical assistance and development of better and faster tests and vaccines, institute officials said.

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II. CanKor

24. Report #217

CanKor (“BUSH APPOINTS SPECIAL ENVOY FOR DPRK HUMAN RIGHTS”, 2005-08-19) The USA appoints Jay Lefkowitz, deputy assistant to President Bush for domestic policy, as special envoy on human rights in North Korea. Lefkowitz previously served on the US delegation to the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, and the International Conference on Anti-Semitism.

(return to top) CanKor (“KIM JONG IL POSITIVE ABOUT SIX-PARTY TALKS: RUSSIAN ENVOY”, 2005-08-18) After meeting with the DPRK leader, Russian presidential representative Konstantin Pulikovsky says that Kim Jong Il is pleased with progress at the six-party talks and ready to re-join the NPT following a suitable agreement. (return to top) CanKor (“KOREA-US WAR GAMES TO START MONDAY”, 2005-08-18) The USA and ROK begin war games on Monday, conducted chiefly through computer simulations. The DPRK was informed of the plan on 11 August. (return to top) CanKor (“HYUNDAI ASAN TO START PILOT TOURS TO KAESONG NEXT WEEK”, 2005-08-18) The ROK company Hyundai-Asan begins pilot tours by bus across the DMZ to the historical DPRK city of Kaesong, capital of the ancient Koryo Kingdom. (return to top) CanKor (“CNN FOUNDER PROPOSES PEACE PARK IN DMZ”, 2005-08-16) CNN founder Ted Turner visits the DPRK and the ROK promoting a proposal to turn the DMZ, a 4km-wide strip of land that crosses the Korean peninsula at the 38th parallel, into an ecological peace park and international tourist attraction. (return to top) CanKor (“SWISS CAFÉ OPENS IN PYONGYANG”, 2005-08-18) A European-style café is doing brisk business in downtown Pyongyang, offering pastries and Western food. The Swiss retailer Migros and aid agency ADRA Switzerland provided start-up funds, with profits used for humanitarian work. (return to top) CanKor (“GIFT TO KIM JONG IL FROM BILLY GRAHAM”, 2005-08-18) KCNA reports that US evangelist Billy Graham has sent a gift to Kim Jong Il. (return to top) CanKor (“THE KOREAN LANGUAGE ALSO NEEDS UNIFYING”, 2005-08-17) Sixty years of separation have caused a bifurcation in the Korean language used by the two sides, with sometimes humorous consequences. Following their June 2000 summit, DPRK leader Kim Jong Il confided that he understood only 80% of what ROK President Kim Dae Jung said to him. (return to top) CanKor (“REPORT ON DEVELOPMENTS RELATED TO DPRK”, ) This week’s FOCUS is on the first half of 2005, with CanKor editor Erich Weingartner’s biannual summary of events related to the DPRK. (return to top)