North Korea is still abiding by the 1994 Agreed Framework, but the agreement is “hanging by a thread,” former U.S. ambassador to South Korea Donald Gregg said today, citing north Korean officials (see GSN, Nov. 5).

“It is hanging by a thread, which means that it is in a very tenuous state, but North Korea is still supporting it,” Gregg said of the framework, following a four-day trip to Pyongyang.

North Korea does appear to be flexible and ready for a “simultaneous approach” to resolving the issue of its nuclear weapons program, Gregg said.  “This we regarded as a step forward,” he said (Agence France-Presse/Bangkok Post, Nov. 6).

North Korean officials have been vague, however, in providing details regarding the country’s uranium enrichment activities, Gregg said.

“The North Koreans said they adopted an NCND — neither confirm nor deny — policy toward the highly enriched uranium issue, although some comments that we heard were very close to admission that they had such a program under way,” he said.

One of Pyongyang’s main concerns is a fear of U.S. aggression, Gregg said.  North Korean officials want assurances — primarily through a U.S.-North Korean nonaggression treaty — that the United States will not attack, he said (see GSN, Nov. 1).

“I think they want the U.S. to give them some assurance that we don’t want to blow them out of the water,” Gregg said (BBC News, Nov. 6).

A statement that U.S. President George W. Bush made during a February visit to Seoul had encouraged North Korea, Gregg said.  Bush said that the United States had no intention of attacking, Gregg said.

“That statement has been drowned out by statements made by other U.S. officials since then,” he said.  “A simple restatement of what Bush said in February would get the whole ball rolling again” (Agence France-Presse/Bangkok Post).

For further information, see:

Agreed Framework Text

KEDO

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