North Links Asset Freeze to Nukes

On December 23, in an interview with Dong-A Ilbo, North Korea’s Vice Foreign Minister and chief delegate to the six-party talks Kim Gye Kwan said, “Once U.S. lifts its financial sanctions, we can discuss freezing nuclear activities, not doing it right away.”

So far, North Korea is said to have suggested that if the U.S. removed its financial sanctions against the North, it would then suspend operation of the 5MW nuclear reactor in Yongbyon and allow inspections of it.

However, Kim completely denied the above matter and stressed that lifting financial sanctions is no more than a precondition to start discussing freeze of nuclear facilities.

While waiting for a flight for Pyongyang at an airport in Beijing, Kim remarked, “The U.S. wants to see North Korea freezing its nuclear facilities by lifting its financial sanctions alone, which is unacceptable.”

Kim further demanded construction of a light-water reactor in exchange for suspending the operation of its nuclear reactor. Kim said, “Suspending the operation of a nuclear reactor should be traded off against building a light-water reactor since a nuclear reactor is used for both economic and military purposes,” and insisted that the North be given alternative energy aid as building a light-water reactor takes time.

When asked what kind of energy source North Korea wants to receive during construction of a light-water reactor, Kim replied, “We have to discuss that.”

In addition, regarding the North-U.S. working-group meeting that consulted on North Korea’s frozen accounts at Banco Delta Asia (BDA) in Macao on December 19 and 20 in Beijing, Kim noted, “it was just a customary meeting. The U.S. didn’t even offer evidence that North Korea committed illegal activities [through BDA bank].”

Kim claimed, “The U.S. wasted time, insisting that the BDA issue is a legal matter. Sanctions should be resolved through political decision.”

Concerning the U.S.’s plan to hold a second working-group session on the BDA issue in New York next January, Kim said, “We have no intention to go to New York. The two sides should find another place.”

Regarding the scheduling of the next round of six-party talks, Kim stated, “The sanctions issue should be resolved first,” signaling that North Korea would link resumption of six-party talks with the outcome of the working-group discussion next January.

If North Korea adheres to a negotiation strategy mentioned by Kim, it is expected that even if the six-party talks are held again, it would be hard for countries participating in the talks to make practical progress.

In this case, voices stressing the uselessness of the six-party talks, which are being raised within the U.S. government, could be more widely spread, and the international claim for strengthening sanctions against the North could emerge.

gun43@donga.com