I. NAPSnet

1. Six Party Talks

Agence France Presse (“NORTH KOREA TO BE GIVEN NEW TIMELINE FOR DISARMAMENT AT SIX-PARTY TALKS”, 2005-11-08) reported that the DPRK will be urged to adopt a step-by-step plan towards nuclear disarmament when the latest round of six party talks begins on Wednesday, Japan’s chief negotiator Kenichiro Sasae said after arriving in Beijing. According to Asahi Shimbun newspaper, Japan, the US, and ROK would propose a “road map” to the DPRK under which it would give-up its nuclear weapons in return for promised benefits. The road map would include a timeline for Pyongyang to verify it is giving-up its nuclear program, reported Asahi Shimbun, citing ROK diplomatic sources.

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2. DPRK on Six Party Talks

Reuters (“N. KOREA SAYS ITS NUCLEAR COMMITMENTS CONDITIONAL”, 2005-11-07) reported that the DPRK warned the US on Monday that the outcome of the next round of six party talks would depend on how Washington fulfilled its commitments under the September accord. The DPRK’s ambassador to the UN, Pak Gil Yon, said he issued the warning after the US and Britain “attempted to mislead” world opinion in statements to the UN General Assembly’s disarmament committee. The US and British statements urged the DPRK “to dismantle its nuclear weapons program unconditionally,” Pak said in letters to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and General Assembly President Jan Eliasson.

(return to top) Reuters (“N. KOREA SOUNDS CAUTIOUS NOTE ON NULCEAR TALKS”, 2005-11-08) reported that the DPRK’s chief negotiator sounded a note of caution on Tuesday ahead of six party talks, saying Washington’s actions made progress difficult. The DPRK’s official news agency went further, saying recent comments by US President Bush about a “tyrant” DPRK “deprived us of any trust” in the US negotiators. “The six-party talks already have a clear direction,” the DPRK’s Kim Kye-gwan said as he left for Beijing. “They are like a beacon guiding the six parties toward progress.” “But that beacon at present is far away, and moreover the mist on the ocean is very thick and sometimes it dulls the beacon. Some actions of the US make it even more difficult,” Xinhua news agency quoted Kim as saying. (return to top)

3. DPRK, ROK on Six Party Talks

The Associated Press (“NORTH KOREA PROMISES ‘SINCERE EFFORTS’”, 2005-11-08) reported that the DPRK’s envoy promised to make “sincere efforts” as diplomats prepared to resume six party talks on Wednesday. DPRK envoy Kim Gye Gwan said his government “cherishes the joint statement.” “We are willing to make sincere efforts at this round of the talks to fulfill the spirit of the joint statement,” he said. The ROK’s Deputy Foreign Minister Song Min-soon said he met with Kim on Tuesday to discuss how the joint statement would be implemented. “We compared North Korea’s thoughts with ours,” Song told reporters after the 80-minute meeting. “There are similar points as well as different points.” He did not give any details but said all parties needed to “take actions mutually that are conducive to create confidence.”

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4. US on Six Party Talks

Yonhap News (“CHIEF US DELEGATE STRESSES NEED FOR PROGRESS IN SIX-WAY TALKS”, 2005-11-08) reported that the chief US delegate to six party talks said on Tuesday that there is a need for the meeting to make immediate headway. “We need to make progress in the next three days,” Christopher Hill told reporters after arriving in Beijing for the meeting slated to start on Wednesday.

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5. PRC on Six Party Talks

Joongang Ilbo (“TOMORROW’S 6-WAY TALKS SEEN AS MERE PLACEHOLDER”, 2005-11-08) reported that any hopes of a quick conclusion to six party talks were further dampened yesterday as Wu Dawei, the PRC’s chief negotiator at the talks, said yesterday that expecting a major breakthrough was unrealistic. Pointing out that the negotiations would only last for three days, he said, “It is premature to expect some kind of major achievement. We are at the stage where a new process is starting.” Another government official said he expected little more than a restatement of positions at this round of talks. “This time we’ll leave it at that and continue next time. In order to keep the momentum going there was a consensus on another round of talks as soon as possible,” he said.

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6. Experts on Six Party Talks

The Financial Times (“BEIJING PRESSURE RAISES HOPES FOR NUCLEAR DEAL”, 2005-11-08) reported that hopes for progress in the fifth round of six party talks have been fuelled by one factor: the PRC President’s inaugural visit to Pyongyang last month. “Hu Jintao’s long overdue visit to North Korea now raises the stakes for the Chinese,” says Ralph Cossa, president of the Pacific Forum CSIS, a Honolulu-based think-tank. “So if the North Koreans are not co-operative it will make the Chinese look bad. That causes me to be a little optimistic that there will be some progress this week.” As well as Beijing, pressure from Washington is also mounting as US bans on “dual-use” technologies is hampering business development and banking investigations are hampering trade transactions in the DPRK. “I don’t think the North Koreans will completely bow to the pressure, but they see the benefit of co-operating with the US,” says Rüdiger Frank, a professor at Korea University.

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7. IAEA on DPRK Nuclear Program

The Korea Times (“EL BARADEI WANTS UNSC TO ADDRESS NK NUKES”, 2005-11-08) reported that the head of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on Tuesday that it is necessary for the Security Council to deal with the DPRK’s nuclear programs. Mohamed ElBaradei said that the DPRK is a “perfect example” of how the IAEA should not manage the nonproliferation regime. “We reported North Korea to the Security Council in 1992, and as I said, nothing has happened,” said ElBaradei. He underlined the need to go ahead with the Security Council engagement, if not in the form of sanctions, then “just actual engagement, trying to understand what needs to be done.” ElBaradei also said that the DPRK’s nuclear programs are just the “tip of the iceberg.” “You need to address a package of measures, you know, security, economic, humanitarian,” ElBaradei said. “At the end of the day, you need to make the country feel secure enough that they do not feel the temptation or the drive to develop nuclear weapons.”

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8. Inter-Korean Economic Cooperation

Joongang Ilbo (“HYUNDAI MENDING FENCES IN 2 KOREAS”, 2005-11-08) reported that Hyundai Asan Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun met Unification Minister Chung Dong-young yesterday to soothe ruffled feathers before Hyun’s trip to the DPRK on Thursday. After the 30-minute meeting, the Ministry said that Hyun had apologized again for the leak of an internal Hyundai Group report that claimed that government funds had been misappropriated by a Hyundai official. Chung said that Ms. Hyun’s apology vindicated the Ministry’s denial of any mismanagement. “Now, the truth is revealed, and normalizing the Mount Kumgang tours as soon as possible will ease the nation’s worries,” he said. Hyun’s immediate aim will be to persuade the DPRK to allow more than 600 tourists at a time to travel to Mount Kumgang.

(return to top) Donga Ilbo (“AID TO NORTH CONTINGENT ON TALKS”, 2005-11-07) reported that it was confirmed on Sunday that the ROK government has decided to delay the establishment of an inter-Korean Cooperation Office and all-out economic cooperation with the DPRK until plans for the denuclearization of the peninsula are agreed upon at the upcoming six party talks. While being briefed on the plans for the Cooperation Office, President Roh put the brakes on the office establishment process by saying, “We should reconsider establishing the South-North Office immediately. It should be delayed until the nuclear talks show tangible results.” The government believes that it will be difficult to attract private and foreign capital for comprehensive economic cooperation with the DPRK if the nuclear issue is not resolved. (return to top)

9. DPRK Defectors in ROK

Chosun Ilbo (“N. KOREAN DEFECTORS HAVE TROUBLE FINDING JOBS IN SOUTH”, 2005-11-08) reported that it took half the DPRK defectors in the ROK more than a year to find employment in the country, with the unemployment rate among them standing at some at 36%. According to a survey by the Korea Labor Institute, 66 of the 117 defectors polled spent more than a year looking for a job, and 23 took two years or more. Another 38 out of 104 defectors who did have a job in the DPRK remain jobless. Some 35.4% of respondents said they worked for a company with fewer than five employees. Only four were hired by large corporations with over 1000 staff. Seven out of 10 were irregular workers, and 67.5% of respondents said their job experience in the DPRK was not useful in their job search in the ROK.

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10. Expert on DPRK Regime Change

The Korea Times (“AMERICAN MILITARY STRATEGIST OFFERS SCENARIOS FOR KIM JONG-ILS’S REMOVAL”, 2005-11-07) reported that a US military strategist, Thomas Barnett, argues in his new book “Blueprint for Action: A Future Worth Creating” that the US must stabilize Asia in order to free its military resources for more urgent tasks in the Middle East. According to Barnett, stabilizing Asia includes ousting Kim Jong-il, for which he offers three potential scenarios he calls the “Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” The “good” scenario is to offer Kim asylum in another country, while the “bad” scenario is to capture him like Manuel Noriega and put him on trial like Slobodan Milosevic. The “ugly” version involves the Pentagon neocons’ war and post-war occupation plans. He predicts Kim’s ouster could come as early as 2010 through a US-PRC partnership.

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11. DPRK at Red Cross Meeting

The Korea Times (“NK RED CROSS DELEGATION EN ROUTE FOR SEOUL”, 2005-11-08) reported that the DPRK delegation for an international Red Cross general assembly in Seoul left for the ROK capital on Tuesday. According to a report by the Korean Central News Agency, the delegation, headed by Paek Yong-ho, deputy chief of the DPRK Red Cross, left Pyongyang for Beijing. The DPRK delegation is to attend the 15th General Assembly of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, as well as the Council of Delegates set to begin on Friday.

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12. PRC-US Trade Relations

Bloomberg News (“SNOW SAYS CHINA HAS TO KEEP MOVING TO ‘FLEXIBLE’ YUAN”, 2005-11-08) reported that the PRC has to continue to move toward a “flexible currency” and make progress on resolving patent protection issues, U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow said. “Our main issues with the PRC are industrial property rights, counterfeiting, making sure WTO rules are enforced and moving to a more flexible currency regime,” Snow said at a press conference in Mumbai on the second of a four-day visit to India.

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13. PRC Bird Flu

Chicago Sun Times, AP (“CHINA SLAUGHTERS 6 MILLION POULTRY”, 2005-11-08) reported that the PRC said Monday that 6 million poultry in 15 villages were destroyed in the province of Liaoning, site of the most recent bird flu outbreak that killed 8,940 chickens. The slaughter was carried out because of rules requiring the destruction of all birds within two miles of an infection site.

(return to top) BBC News (“CHINA OFFERS BIRD FLU INSURANCE”, 2005-11-08) reported that a PRC insurance company is to become the first to start offering a life policy specifically for bird flu. Minsheng Life Insurance has been given the go-ahead by the PRC Insurance Regulatory Commission, according to the state-run PRC Daily newspaper. The scheme will pay out a maximum of 100,000 yuan ($12,400; £7,000). People in the main cities will pay 200 yuan for the policy, while those outside only 100 yuan, although for a reduced payout of 50,000 yuan. (return to top)

14. Bird Flu

China Post, Reuters (“EXPERTS WARN OF HUMAN, FINANCIAL BIRD FLU TOLL”, 2005-11-08) reported that the World Bank said on Monday a flu pandemic could cost the global economy as much as US$800 billion a year as the PRC called in international health officials to discover whether bird flu had killed a 12-year-old girl. The World Bank set out the likely financial cost at a meeting in Geneva at which hundreds of experts are drawing up a strategy to prevent bird flu from developing into a pandemic in which millions could die.

(return to top) Xinhua (“CHIP DESIGNED FOR QUICK FLU INDENTIFICATION”, 2005-11-08) reported that a novel “Flu Chip” has been developed to determine the genetic signatures of specific influenza strains from patient samples within hours, US scientists reported on Monday. This achievement, expected to be in use in laboratories within a year, may help world health officials combat the predicted flu epidemics by making it easier for more laboratories to swiftly identify severe flu strains, the researchers said. (return to top) New York Times (“BIRD-FLU BATTLE IN EASTERN ASIA IS TO BE JOINED BY WORLD BANK”, 2005-11-08) reported that the World Bank announced a $500 million loan program on Monday to provide financing quickly to poor Southeast Asian countries that are struggling to combat an outbreak of avian flu. It also warned that a global human pandemic, should it occur, could cause $800 billion in economic losses. (return to top)

15. PRC on Envrionmental Issues

Xinhua (“CHINA SETS AWARD FOR ACTIVISTS IN ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION”, 2005-11-08) reported that a list of 20 candidates for the award on environmental protection, first of its kind by the PRC government, was announced here Tuesday. These include Tian Guirong, who volunteered to collect used batteries at his own cost of 200,000 yuan (24,600 US dollars), Song Jun, an entrepreneur who championed a drive to reforest a desert and Jiang Rong, author of a popular novel that appeals for attention to ecological protection. Most of them are volunteers for the protection of environment.

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16. PRC-US Trade Relations

BBC News (“US AND CHINA SIGN TEXTILES DEAL”, 2005-11-08) reported that the US and PRC have signed a deal resolving their long-running trade dispute over PRC textile exports. The US trade representative, Rob Portman, said the agreement was fair to both sides. PRC Commerce Minister Bo Xilai said the PRC had hoped for more. It follows a similar deal the PRC signed earlier this year with Europe.

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17. PRC-UK Relations

BBC News (“CHINESE VISIT GREETED BY PROTESTS”, 2005-11-08) reported that protesters have greeted PRC president Hu Jintao and his wife as they arrived for a three-day UK visit. The pair was ceremonially greeted by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh on Horse Guards Parade, central London. Hundreds of human rights protesters and PRC government supporters lined the area as they entered Buckingham Palace in the royal carriage. The couple will stay at the palace and Mr Hu will visit 10 Downing Street for talks with Tony Blair.

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18. PRC-India Relations

New York Times (“INDIA AND CHINA TAKE ON THE WORLD AND EACH OTHER”, 2005-11-08) reported that for years, the rapid growth of the PRC and India has been based on business with the developed world, and has often meant taking business away from Western industries. Now, companies in the two largest emerging economies in the world are beginning to hunt intensively for business in each other’s markets.

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19. PRC Aids Issue

Washington Post (“HOSPITALS IN CHINA FIND PROFIT IN AIDS”, 2005-11-08) reported that after years of denial about the extent of AIDS in the world’s most populous country, the PRC’s leaders have unleashed a well-financed campaign to stem an epidemic that by the government’s reckoning afflicts 840,000 people. But these efforts are being undermined by a relentless drive for profit within the PRC health care system, a product of the country’s shift toward capitalism.

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20. PRC on Tiananmen Reformist

China Post, Reuters (“CHINA IS CONSIDERING LOW-KEY TRIBUTE TO REFORMIST LEADER”, 2005-11-08) reported that fearful of triggering unrest, PRC’s Communist Party has proposed low-key commemorations for the reformist leader whose death in 1989 sparked the Tiananmen pro-democracy protest, political sources said on Monday.

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21. Cross-Strait Relations

Xinhua (“FEASABILITY OF CROSS-STRAITS TUNNEL DISCUSSED”, 2005-11-08) reported that experts from the PRC mainland and Taiwan gathered yesterday to discuss the feasibility of building an underwater tunnel across the Taiwan Straits. This is the fifth time that experts from the PRC mainland and Taiwan held seminars since 1998 on the project to construct the world’s longest underwater tunnel. Among the three planned routes proposed in the previous discussions, the northern route, linking Pingtan Island of East China’s Fujian Province with Hsinchu of Taiwan, is considered the best and most feasible.

(return to top) China Post (“OFFICIALS DECLINE TO REVEAL AID TO SENEGAL “, 2005-11-08) reported that all officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) declined to comment on how much Taiwan had spent in order to maintain its diplomatic relations with Senegal, though President Chen Shui-bian already put the figure at NT$5 billion (US$148.4 million). Lawmakers of the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) criticized the president at a news conference at the Legislative Yuan for disclosing classified diplomatic information. (return to top)

22. Japan on Fujimori Arrest

Yomiuri Shimbun (“GOVT WANTS OFFICIALS TO HAVE ACCESS TO FUJIMORI”, 2005-11-08) reported that the government intends to demand Chile allow Japanese Embassy officials in that country to meet with former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori when it receives a report from Santiago about its arrest of the former president, government sources said Monday. The government wants the officials to meet with Fujimori because he is a Japanese citizen.

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23. Japanese Government on Imperial Family

Yomiuri Shimbun (“PANEL: IGNORE GENDER IN IMPERIAL SUCCESSION”, 2005-11-08) reported that a government panel on Imperial succession is leaning toward advising the government to give priority to the eldest child in the Imperial family regardless of gender in determining the order of succession when it compiles its report this month. The panel, chaired by former Tokyo University President Hiroyuki Yoshikawa, is a private advisory body to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

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24. USFJ Base Realignment

Asahi Shimbun (“U.S.: TRANSFER OF 7,000 MARINES FROM OKINAWA TO GUAM HINGES ON FUTENMA RELOCATION PLAN”, 2005-11-08) reported that Washington set up a potential showdown between Tokyo and Okinawa Governor Keiichi Inamine by saying the transfer of 7,000 Marines from the prefecture depends on the planned relocation of the Futenma base, officials said. Inamine has expressed his determination to reject the plan to relocate the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, currently in Ginowan, to a US military heliport to be built partly on US Marines Camp Schwab land in Nago’s Henoko district, and partly offshore.

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25. Hong Kong Democracy

New York Times (“DEMOCRACY PUSH IN HONG KONG”, 2005-11-08) reported that two years after a democracy movement shook Hong Kong’s political establishment and forced the withdrawal of plans for stringent internal security legislation, democracy advocates are once again preparing for a showdown with local leaders and with Beijing.

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