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U.S., North Korean Officials Discuss Crisis; Japan Asks Libya for Korea Nuclear Information
Senior U.S. and North Korean officials attended a conference yesterday that included discussions of six-party talks on Pyongyang’s nuclear program, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, July 21). Joseph DeTrani, U.S. special envoy for negotiations with North Korea, and Li Gun, deputy head of U.S. affairs at North Korea’s Foreign Ministry, attended the two-day, closed-door Conference on Northeast Asian Security in New York, organized by the National Committee on American Foreign Policy. There were unconfirmed reports of the two conferring during a break. However, the United States plans to pursue a resolution to the nuclear standoff through multilateral negotiations and has no plans to engage Pyongyang directly, according to U.S. officials. “We’re not seeking a bilateral negotiation with the North Koreans. We are seeking a multilateral solution to a problem of multinational interest, and we think the best way is the six-party talks,” said a U.S. State Department official. Two topics of yesterday’s session were “Perception of the Six-Party Talks” and the “U.S. Proposal and Reaction to It,” according to the Associated Press. Speakers included DeTrani, Li, and Chinese diplomat Yang Xi Yu, director of the Korean Peninsula office. “A positive and constructive conversation was held and the participants discussed frankly and openly,” Yang said at the conclusion of the session (Associated Press/Boston Herald, Aug. 11). Meanwhile, a Japanese official requested yesterday that Libya provide information about North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs, Jiji Press Ticker Service reported. Senior Vice Foreign Minister Ichiro Aisawa requested the assistance from his visiting Libyan counterpart, Mohamed Siala. He also called on the North African nation to exert pressure on Pyongyang to resolve the nuclear crisis. Libya is prepared to play an important role in the issue of weapons of mass destruction and missiles, Siala is reported to have told Aisawa in response to the appeal (Jiji Press Ticker Service, Aug. 10).
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