NAPSNet Daily Report Monday, July 25, 2005
- 1. US-DPRK Meeting Ahead of Six Party Talks
2. ROK-DPRK Meeting Ahead of Six Party Talks
3. ROK, US, Japan on Denuclearization of DPRK
4. US, ROK Agree to Inspections by DPRK
5. Expert on ROK Role in DPRK’s Return to Six Party Talks
6. Experts on ROK Energy Proposal to DPRK
7. GNP on ROK Energy Proposal to DPRK
8. Japan on Aid to DPRK at Six Party Talks
9. ROK on DPRK Human Rights Issue at Six Party Talks
10. DPRK Ready for Visit From Bush
11. DPRK, ROK Dismantle Propaganda along DMZ
12. Inter-Korean Civil Phone Line
13. Expert on Volcanic Activity of Mt. Paektu
14. Japan Missile Defense Program
15. Japan on UNSC Expansion
16. Japan Textbook Issue
17. Cross Strait Relations
18. PRC-Zimbabwe Relations
19. PRC-Nigerian Relations
20. PRC Unidentified Illness
21. PRC Unrest
II. CanKor
- 22. # 213
I. Unites States
1. US-DPRK Meeting Ahead of Six Party Talks
Associated Press (“U.S., N. KOREAN ENVOYS HOLD RARE MEETING “, 2005-07-25) reported that US and DPRK negotiators held a rare one-on-one meeting Monday to try to lay the groundwork for progress in upcoming six-party talks. During their 75-minute meeting, US envoy Christopher Hill and the DPRK envoy discussed the terms of their dispute in an effort to prepare for productive talks, but they did not negotiate nor take up specific issues, a US official said.
2. ROK-DPRK Meeting Ahead of Six Party Talks
korea.net (“TWO KOREAS CONSULT AHEAD OF 6-PARTY NEGOTIATIONS”, 2005-07-24) reported that negotiators from the ROK and the DPRK held bilateral discussions in Beijing to prepare for the six-party talks, a Seoul official said. Deputy Foreign Minister Song Min-soon, the ROK’s chief delegate to the talks, met with his DPRK counterpart Kim Kye-gwan in a 100-minute discussion. Song said the two negotiators agreed on the need to institute a “framework” for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. “We shared the view that (participants) in the talks should produce substantial progress and come up with a framework for the realization of a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula,” he told reporters.
3. ROK, US, Japan on Denuclearization of DPRK
Chosun Ilbo (“S. KOREA, U.S., JAPAN WANT WRITTEN COMMITMENT FROM NORTH”, 2005-07-25) reported that the ROK, US and Japan will ask the DPRK at the six-party talks for an unambiguous written commitment to dismantling its nuclear program. A diplomatic source said DPRK must announce a strategic decision to unconditionally dismantle its nuclear program. The source also said that Washington and Tokyo have threatened to stop the talks and impose sanctions if the written undertaking was not forthcoming.
4. US, ROK Agree to Inspections by DPRK
Chosun Ilbo (“U.S., S. KOREA COULD LET NORTH INSPECT USFK”, 2005-07-25) reported that the ROK and the US governments have agreed they would throw open USFK to inspections from the DPRK if it agrees to scrap its nuclear program. A ROK official said, “our position concerning nuclear transparency is firm, and both South Korea and the US agree that they are prepared to open up USFK facilities if necessary.”
5. Expert on ROK Role in DPRK’s Return to Six Party Talks
korea.net (“S. KOREA CAN CLAIM CREDIT FOR RESUMPTION OF SIX-PARTY TALKS”, 2005-07-24) reported that according to Kenneth Quinones, the former DPRK Affairs Director of the US Department of State, said that the ROK can proudly claim considerable credit for the resumption of the six-party talks. “Seoul’s patience and persistence have paid handsome dividends. Washington and Pyongyang have finally agreed to halt their tension-heightening war of words and instead to demonstrate reciprocal flexibility to restart the six-party talks,” Quinones said.
6. Experts on ROK Energy Proposal to DPRK
Korea Times (“SEOUL’S ENERGY CARROT LOOKS LIKE A LEMON”, 2005-07-22) reported that according to Peter Hayes, director of the Nautilus Institute, the DPRK’s decrepit energy grid would be unable to efficiently use the 2 million kilowatts of electricity being offered by the ROK. “Just delivering power to North Korea doesn’t mean they can use it because their distribution infrastructure is in a terrible state. A lot of energy would be wasted unless financing is provided to upgrade the infrastructure in North Korea,” Hayes said.
7. GNP on ROK Energy Proposal to DPRK
Korea Times (“ELECTRICITY AID TO NK RAISES SECURITY CONCERN”, 2005-07-21) reported that according to Rep. Song Young-sun of the main opposition GNP, the DPRK could use the 2 million kilowatts of electricity offered by the ROK as an incentive for denuclearization to build its military. Song Young-sun said that the ROK’s electricity aid could help the DPRK enhance its military 20 percent by 2010, quoting military experts in the ROK. “Especially if the North diverts the electricity aid to its ammunition factories, estimated at around 50 facilities, experts believe the North might be able to have some 2 million tons of ammunition in store,” Song said.
8. Japan on Aid to DPRK at Six Party Talks
The Asahi Shimbun (“TOKYO JETTISONS IDEA TO OFFER AID AT 6-WAY TALKS”, 2005-07-25) reported that despite joinning an international plan last year to provide energy to DPRK if Pyongyang met certain conditions, Japan will not be providing aid to the DPRK. This year, Tokyo will only “seek normalization of relations after nuclear and abduction issues are resolved,” an official said. Several government officials have confirmed this position, and the Japanese government has already explained its position to several of the nations involved, including the US. “The best assistance we can give for now is not to embark immediately on economic sanctions,” a Japanese official said.
9. ROK on DPRK Human Rights Issue at Six Party Talks
korea.net (“N. KOREA’S HUMAN RIGHTS NOT ON AGENDA FOR NUKE TALKS”, 2005-07-22) reported that according the ROK delegate, the DPRK human rights issue will be excluded from the six-party talks. “The human rights issue is not and cannot be an agenda item for the six-party talks. All the nations have already reached a consensus on this point,” Deputy Foreign Minister Song Min-soon said.
10. DPRK Ready for Visit From Bush
Donga Ilbo (“NORTH KOREA READY FOR VISIT FROM BUSH”, 2005-07-25) reported that the DPRK says they are ready to receive US President George W. Bush or Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to normalize relations between the two countries. According to diplomatic sources, the remark of Bush’s visit to the DPRK came out while discussing how to build trust between the two countries, and the DPRK mentioned that they are ready to receive the former president George H.W. Bush as well as President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
11. DPRK, ROK Dismantle Propaganda along DMZ
Joongang Ilbo (“PROPAGANDA REMOVAL RESUMES ALONG DMZ”, 2005-07-25) reported that the DPRK and the ROK resumed dismantling loudspeakers and propaganda billboards along their respective borders as part of an agreement reached last week to minimize tensions along the demilitarized zone.
12. Inter-Korean Civil Phone Line
korea.net (“DIRECT SEOUL-PYONGYANG CIVIL PHONE LINES OPEN IN 60 YEARS”, 2005-07-22) reported that the ROK has opened a direct civil phone line with the DPRK for the first time in 60 years as part of preparations for the reunion of separated families through video equipment. KT Corp., a key fixed-line service provider, said that the phone line has linked Seoul and Pyongyang.
13. Expert on Volcanic Activity of Mt. Paektu
Korea Times (“VOLCANIC ACTIVITY ON MT. PAEKTU RISES”, 2005-07-22) reported that according to a PRC scientist, volcanic activity around Mt. Paektu, on the border of the DPRK and the PRC, is on the rise.
14. Japan Missile Defense Program
The Associated Press (“JAPAN’S DEFENSE CHIEF GIVEN POWER TO SHOOT DOWN MISSILES”, 2005-07-23) reported that Japan’s Parliament approved legislation authorizing the defense chief to order the shooting down of missiles without permission from the prime minister or the cabinet, a response to increasing concerns about the DPRK’s nuclear weapons and missile programs. Proponents argued that a missile from the DPRK could hit Japan within 10 minutes and that the legislation was needed to allow the nation’s defense forces to react quickly, rather than going through bureaucratic channels that could delay a military response.
(return to top) Reuters (“JAPAN MAY ADVANCE MISSILE SHIELD DEPLOYMENT -PAPER”, 2005-07-23) reported that Japan may start deploying a missile shield by the end of next March, a year earlier than planned, to counter the threat of DPRK and PRC ballistic missiles, a Japanese daily said on Saturday. The Yomiuri Shimbun, quoting government sources, said Tokyo was considering a faster track for deployment so that some of the missile defense system will be ready when the bill comes into effect at the end of the fiscal year, which ends in March 2006. (return to top)
15. Japan on UNSC Expansion
Reuters (“JAPAN TO MAKE LAST-MINUTE PUSH FOR UN COUNCIL SEAT”, 2005-07-24) reported that Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura left for London on Sunday for a last-ditch effort to gain support from African states for Japan’s bid to become a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. Machimura may skip a series of regional meetings in Laos from Wednesday, including an Asia-Pacific security conference, to focus on the UN campaign, even though his absence could be seen as a slight by some Asian countries.
16. Japan Textbook Issue
The Associated Press (“KOREANS, CHINESE SUE GOV’T OVER TEXTBOOK”, 2005-07-22) reported that a group of Koreans and Chinese filed a lawsuit Friday seeking to force a state government to ban new textbooks they say gloss over Japan’s militaristic past, a Japanese news agency reported. The 577 plaintiffs also demanded $9 each for alleged psychological suffering caused by the publication of textbooks that glorify Japan’s aggression in Asia in the 1930s and 1940s, Kyodo News agency said.
17. Cross Strait Relations
Kyodo (“TAIWAN’S CHEN DENOUNCES ‘FRUIT-TO-CHINA’ PLAN”, 2005-07-25) reported that Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian snubbed Monday the PRC’s recent offer of preferential treatment for Taiwanese fruit, calling it a tactic aimed at swaying the 2008 presidential election. “The move has a blatant political motive behind,” Chen told a farmers meeting in Taipei. “It is not for the sake of the farmers, but for its own ‘united front’ work.”
18. PRC-Zimbabwe Relations
The Assocaited Press (“MUGABE ARRIVES IN CHINA FOR WEEKLONG VISIT”, 2005-07-25) reported that Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe arrived Saturday in Beijing for a visit expected to include a plea for oil and food to aid his state’s failing economy. In response to widespread criticism of his government’s so-called urban cleanup drive that has seen tens of thousands of people lose their homes and livelihoods, Mugabe has said his country will now rely on the PRC and other Asian countries for aid, rather than the West.
19. PRC-Nigerian Relations
Reuters (“CHINA SEALS 30,000 BPD NIGERIAN CRUDE DEAL – NNPC”, 2005-07-25) reported that Nigeria has signed an agreement to supply 30,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil to the PRC’s largest oil and gas producer PetroChina , a Nigerian official said on Monday. The contract is a sign that the fast-growing Asian giant, which is the second largest oil consumer after the US, is successfully competing to secure supplies from producers historically in Washington’s sphere of influence.
20. PRC Unidentified Illness
Washington Post (“UNKNOWN ILLNESS KILLS NINE CHINESE FARMERS”, 2005-07-23) reported that an unidentified disease has killed nine farmers and sickened 11 others in a rural part of the PRC’s western Sichuan province, prompting the government to dispatch an emergency team of researchers to investigate whether the deaths are related to bird flu, a Health Ministry spokesman said. State media said the illnesses occurred between June 24 and July 21 in about 15 villages surrounding the city of Ziyang, 945 miles southwest of Beijing. All of the farmers had recently slaughtered sick pigs or sheep, and researchers from the health and agriculture ministries are investigating a possible link, the official New China News Agency said.
21. PRC Unrest
The Associated Press (“CHINESE FARMERS IN DISPUTE WITH FACTORY”, 2005-07-23) reported that farmers had long feared the runoff from the pharmaceutical factory. It turned irrigation water to a greasy, red sludge and stunted vegetable crops. They blamed it for a local rise in cancer and birth defects. When a drought concentrated pollutants like never before, they turned to action, attacking the Jingxin Pharmaceutical plant with rocks and farm tools and forcing it to suspend production. By midweek, the farmers of Shengzhou township had lifted their siege of the Jingxin plant while officials said they were trying to negotiate a settlement. Amid the uneasy peace, farmers warned of further incidents if the plant resumed production or continued to refuse their compensation demands.
II. CanKor
22. # 213
CanKor (“SIX-NATION NUCLEAR TALKS WILL BEGIN JULY 26 IN BEIJING”, 2005-07-19) Beijing and Seoul confirm July 26 as the starting date for a new round of six-party talks. No limit has apparently been set for the duration of the talks, underscoring a strong desire by the nations involved to reach a breakthrough, even if it means extending the talks beyond the 4-day limit that has been adhered to during the three previous unsuccessful rounds.
(return to top) CanKor (“DPRK ON DPRK AND US CONTACT IN NEW YORK “, 2005-07-19) Explaining the DPRK’s decision to rejoin the talks, a DPRK Foreign Ministry spokesperson emphasizes that during contacts made in New York, US Government representatives “clarified that [the US Administration] would recognize the DPRK as a sovereign state, not to invade it and hold bilateral talks within the framework of the six-party talks, and the DPRK side interpreted it as a retraction of its remark designating the former as an ‘outpost of tyranny’ and decided to return to the six-party talks”. (return to top) CanKor (“TOP UN ENVOY TO DPRK LOSES POST “, 2005-07-19) Amid questions about his connection to a suspect in the UN oil-for-food scandal, the contract of Canadian businessman Maurice Strong as top UN envoy to the DPRK fails to be renewed. (return to top) CanKor (“TOP MILITARY FROM KOREAS AGREE TO INCREASE CONTACTS”, 2005-07-20) North and South Korean military authorities at their first face-to-face meeting in a year agree to set up hotlines to prevent naval clashes in bordering regions. (return to top) CanKor (“US ACTIVISTS IN BIG PUSH ON DPRK HUMAN RIGHTS”, 2005-07-18) Activists at a conference organized by the US government-funded Freedom House reject suggestions by critics that pressure on the issue of human rights would upset delicate diplomacy at the six-party talks. (return to top) CanKor FOCUS (“INSIDE DPRK”, 2005-07-19) Famine, foreign aid, economic hardship, increased cross-border exchanges with a more open PR China, a growing black market — these elements are leading to a shift in consciousness and perception of “ordinary” DPR Koreans about their place in the world and the state of their nation. In this week’s “Inside DPRK” FOCUS section presents two companion articles by Barbara Demick, Seoul bureau chief of the Los Angeles Times, who gathered personal stories from residents of Chongjin, the DPRK’s third-largest city on the northeast coast. (return to top)