U.S. specialists to visit Korea for N. Korea policy review

The North Korea policy of the United States is soon to undergo a sweeping change. Secretary of State Colin Powell told his Senate confirmation hearing that he would review Washington's policy toward Pyongyang to ensure greater reciprocity. A diplomatic source in Washington said Tuesday that the review could go much farther than the Seoul government foresees.

The source, well informed on the new foreign policy-security team of the Bush administration, said that some Republicans are going so far as to call for scrapping the Framework Agreement reached with North Korea in 1994. The excessive demand for repealing the accord that is realistically impossible suggests the high level of disaffection with the present relations between North Korea and the United States.

The Seoul government thinks the change of power in Washington will not bring about much change in North Korea policy, but the policy of the new administration will be much different from that of President Clinton, the source said, as indicated by the advice given by Richard Armitage, deputy secretary nominee at the State Department, against using the term "sunshine policy" by the Seoul government.

The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), which prepared a recommendation on North Korea policy in July 1999, focusing on selective engagement, revealed that it would send a group of Korea watchers to Seoul in March to work on a new report. A task force will come into being to concentrate on the Korean question. To be co-chaired by former U.S. ambassador to Seoul James Laney and former undersecretary of state Morton Abramowitz, the team will send a mission consisting of 20-plus Korea specialists, accompanied by a number of observers from the State Department, the Pentagon and the National Security Council.