Major powers in delicate balancing act over NKorea: diplomats

NUKEWARS

SKorea to review US limit on its missile technology
Following North Korea's rocket launch South Korea must consider revising a defence accord with the United States which restricts missile development, Prime Minister Han Seung-Soo said Monday. "An accord with the United States imposes a maximum range of 300 kilometres (187 miles) for our missiles," Han told parliament. "It is necessary for (South Korea) to review whether such restrictions are proper at this time," he said when lawmakers called for measures to counter North Korea's missile threat. The North claimed it had successfully put a satellite into space Sunday. But the United States and South Korea say the launch failed to get anything into orbit. Washington, Seoul and Tokyo said the launch was a smoke-screen for testing a Taepodong-2 intercontinental ballistic missile, which at maximum range could theoretically hit the US states of Alaska and Hawaii. "It's time to have serious discussions (on the missile accord) at talks between the defence chiefs," Han said, referring to an annual high-level security conference between Seoul and Washington. Washington, concerned about an arms race in Northeast Asia, has restricted South Korea's missile development. The two Koreas have been technically at war since the 1950-1953 conflict ended only in an armistice and not a full peace pact. Some 28,500 American troops are stationed in the South. The North's latest launch sparked concern in South Korea, which has not joined the United States and Japan in efforts to develop a joint missile defence system. In addition to the Taepodong-2 the North deploys hundreds of Scuds and Rodongs with a range of up to 1,300 kilometres, capable of hitting anywhere in the South. Foreign Minister Yu Myung-Hwan said Sunday that Seoul was now considering joining the US-led Proliferation Security Initiative aimed at stopping ships suspected of carrying weapons of mass destruction and related materials. The North has warned that Seoul's participation would amount to a declaration of war. South Korea's former liberal government avoided full participation in the initiative for the sake of inter-Korean ties. Even after the North's first nuclear test in 2006, Seoul maintained its status as an observer.

by Staff Writers
United Nations (AFP) April 6, 2009
Major powers are engaged in a delicate balancing act to get some form of UN censure of North Korea's long-range rocket launch while also reviving stalled nuclear disarmament talks, diplomats and experts said.

On Sunday, the UN Security Council failed to agree on a call by the United States and its allies for a tough response to what they view as Pyongyang's "provocative act" in firing a Taepodong-2 missile in apparent violation of United Nations resolutions.

Russia and China, two veto-wielding council members, joined Libya, Uganda and Vietnam in calling for restraint so as not to endanger the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear disarmament.

"We are now in a very sensitive moment. All countries concerned should show restraint and refrain from taking action that might lead to increased tension," China's UN Ambassador Zhang Yesui said Sunday as council members agreed to negotiate in the coming days to find common ground on an appropriate response.

"Our position is that the council's reaction has be cautious and proportionate," Zhang added.

Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters Monday that "first of all, we need to remember that the core element in this whole situation is the six-party talks."

The talks, hosted by China and including the United States, South Korea, Japan and Russia, have been stalled since December last year after Pyongyang refused to agree on ways of verifying its claims on nuclear disarmament moves.

"The key thing in our mind is to have a common strategy among the participants of the six-party talks, as to make sure that those talks continue," he added.

John Park, a North Korea expert at the Washington-based United States Institute of Peace think-tank said the US was performing a "difficult balancing act," caught between China's warning not to harm the six-party talks and Japan's demand for "punitive measures like economic sanctions.

"There is a recognition that it will be difficult to get economic sanctions but in lieu of trying to go for economic sanctions, one way to show the displeasure of the US is to make a strong statement," he added.

Hence US President Barack Obama's tough public posture Sunday, he noted.

"Rules must be binding, violations must be punished, words must mean something," Obama said during a speech in Prague Sunday about ridding the world of nuclear weapons.

On Monday, US ambassador to the UN Susan Rice said Washington would continue to press for a UN "resolution with some teeth in it" that would punish North Korea.

"What's important is that we send a message to the North that this type of behavior is provocative, it cannot happen again, and that if it's interested in getting back into the good graces of the international community it needs to desist from this type of behavior and activity," State Department spokesman Robert Wood told reporters in Washington.

A senior US official said on condition of anonymity that Washington wanted a Security Council response but "the form of it is not what we should be hung up on."

Bargaining on an acceptable text was continuing both here among ambassadors of the five permanent members of the Security Council -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- plus Japan as well as among their respective capitals, diplomats said.

Meanwhile, Park said China was also trying "to juggle a lot of balls at the same time."

He noted that Beijing wanted to preserve closer economic cooperation with Pyongyang at a time when the two neighbors celebrated the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties, while also being mindful of its responsibilities as chair of the six-party talks.

"It (China) has very little wiggle room" and is experiencing "frustration" with its Stalinist neighbor, Park said.

"The lowest common denominator is going back to the six-party talks as early as possible," he added. "It's just how do we get past this immediate issue of responding to the missile test in a credible manner."

He agreed with several diplomats and other experts who see the most likely outcome as the Security Council adopting a non-binding statement expressing concern over the launch, while also urging Pyongyang to return to the talks and respect UN resolutions barring it from conducting missile-related activities.

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NUKEWARS

SKorea to consider joining anti-WMD drill

Seoul (AFP) April 5, 2009
South Korea is considering joining a US-led initiative to curb weapons of mass destruction after North Korea's rocket launch on Sunday, Foreign Minister Yu Myung-Hwan said.

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