Powers jockey for position amid power change in N. Korea

In the wake of the official funeral for North Korea`s late leader Kim Jong Il, the countries with a major stake in the Korean Peninsula have begun full-fledged moves to gain the upper hand in the region.

The Japanese daily Yomiuri Shimbun said Thursday that China will invite North Korea`s new leader Kim Jong Un soon for a visit. Beijing intends to stress its role as Pyongyang`s guardian with the early invitation, experts said.

China is expected to send a mourning delegation to Pyongyang to directly deliver its plan for food aid to Kim Jong Un and urge him to visit Beijing as soon as possible. Li Yuanchao, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, is being mentioned as the leader of the mourning delegation.

A diplomatic source in Beijing said China is likely to send food aid to North Korea as early as next month, and if Kim Jong Un has early dialogue with Chinese President Hu Jintao, the young leader will secure a type of warranty from Beijing.

The U.S. and South Korea are also revving up efforts to resume the six-party nuclear talks. Lim Sung-nam, Seoul`s chief nuclear negotiator, said after a meeting with U.S. special envoy to North Korea Glyn Davies in Washington Wednesday, “Seoul and Washington saw eye to eye on the necessity of resuming talks on the North Korean nuclear issue under the right conditions.” Lim did not elaborate on the "right conditions," however.

Also attending the meeting were Cho Hyun-dong, director-general for North Korean Affairs of the Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry, and Robert King, a U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights issues who has discussed with the North in Beijing the provision of food aid.

Prior to the meeting, U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters that the U.S. is waiting for signals from North Korea, hinting at resuming high-level talks with Pyongyang according to the latter`s response.

U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Sung Kim was also spotted in the State Department the same day. His secret visit to Washington was to discuss the political situation on the Korean Peninsula after Kim Jong Il`s death, according to experts.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell will visit South Korea, China and Japan next week, according to multiple sources.

Russia is known to have replaced its top negotiator to the six-party talks. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov was named Moscow`s top nuclear negotiator in replacing Alexei Borodavkin, who was reassigned as ambassador to Geneva.

The replacement of Russia`s top nuclear envoy is considered preparation for the resumption of the six-party talks, which are highly likely to restart early next year, according to experts. Once counselor at the Russian embassies in Tokyo and Beijing, Morgulov was promoted to deputy foreign minister last week.

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