South Korean and Chinese officials met today and discussed North Korea’s nuclear program with the aim of reducing tensions between Washington and Pyongyang (see GSN, Dec. 31, 2002).  Meanwhile, U.S. President George W. Bush said yesterday he believed a peaceful solution to the issue could be reached.

South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Lee Tae-shik, in a meeting with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wang Yi, is believed to have called on China to increase pressure on North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons efforts, according to Reuters.

China and South Korea provided few details as to what transpired during the meeting, according to Reuters.

“The two sides exchanged views on bilateral relations and common concerns on North Korea nuclear issues,” a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said.

A diplomatic source said the meeting could help efforts to solve the nuclear issue peacefully, Reuters reported.

“I think it will help improve the atmosphere to resolve this nuclear issue in a peaceful manner,” the source said.  “It is always good for the surrounding countries to discuss this issue.  In that sense, I think it may have some influence on North Korea,” the source added (Tamora Vidaillet, Reuters, Jan. 2).

Washington Seeks Diplomatic Solution

Bush said yesterday that he believed the North Korean nuclear issue could be resolved through diplomacy, but did not explicitly rule out the threat of military action.

“There is strong consensus, not only among the nations in the neighborhood and our friends, but also with international organizations, such as the IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency], that North Korea ought to comply with international regulations.  I believe this can be done peacefully, through diplomacy, and we will continue to work that way,” Bush said during an informal press conference in Crawford, Texas.  “All options, of course, are always on the table for any president, but by working with these countries we can resolve this,” he added.

Bush also said he looked forward to a visit by South Korean President-elect Roh Moo-hyun once he is in office (U.S. State Department release, Jan. 1).

Pyongyang Calls for Inter-Korean Cooperation

North Korea called on its southern neighbor today for support against the United States in the conflict over its nuclear program.

“It can be said that there exists on the Korean Peninsula at present only confrontation between the Koreans in the North and the South and the United States,” Pyongyang said in its New Year’s message.  “There is neither reason nor condition for the fellow countrymen to strain the situation and disturb peace against the fellow countrymen as the North and the South are heading for reconciliation, unity and reunification,” the message said.

Some experts have said North Korea’s calls for inter-Korean cooperation are based on economic concerns, which have increased with the threat of U.S. action to further isolate the country.

“North Korea has been digging deeper into isolation these days, and the United States is pouring hot water into the hole to force it to come out,” said Koh Yoo-hwan, a North Korea expert at Dongkuk University in Seoul.  “At this hard time, North Korea increasingly sees that South Korea is its only friend, as it tries to avoid the brunt of U.S. diplomatic pressure,” Koh said (Sang-hun Choe, Associated Press/Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Jan. 2).

Humanitarian Situation

North Korea faces a dangerous food shortage as supplies are expected to begin running out next month, said Rick Corsino, director of the U.N. World Food Program’s operation in Pyongyang.  Once those supplies are gone, the program will be forced to stop providing food to about 3 million of its 4.5 million “most vulnerable” aid recipients, including millions of children, pregnant women and the elderly, he said.

The U.S. efforts to increase pressure on North Korea and to further isolate it economically, along with attempts to persuade Pyongyang’s neighbors to do the same, have led to fears of food being used as a weapon.  U.S. officials have denied that the Bush administration has called on Japan, South Korea, China and Russia to use all means, including food aid, to pressure North Korea into abandoning its nuclear efforts.  The United States itself will base its decision on whether to continue humanitarian aid to Pyongyang solely on the basis of need, officials said.

Instead of denying further humanitarian aid outright, the United States can accomplish the same effect by delaying its decision on whether to do so while food supplies run out, analysts said.  The United States could also allow other countries to indicate that large amounts of developmental aid would be forthcoming only if North Korea gives up its nuclear program, they said (Sonni Efron, Los Angeles Times, Jan. 2).

A senior Bush administration official has said the United States plans to provide the same level of humanitarian aid to North Korea this year as it has in the past.

“We expect to continue providing the same level of aid to the (U.N.) World Food Program in Korea as we have in the past,” the official said on Tuesday in reply to written questions from Reuters.  “We don’t use food as a political weapon,” the official added (Reuters/New York Times, Jan. 1).

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