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IAEA Adopts North Korea Resolution Favored by U.S.
The International Atomic Energy Agency on Friday passed a resolution criticizing North Korea for breaching the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty while at the same time applauding its promise to give up its nuclear weapons program, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Sept. 30). China and Russia did not co-sponsor the text, which largely reflected U.S. priorities, according to AP. One diplomat said drafters tried to balance U.S. disarmament concerns with Chinese-requested language acknowledging potential rewards for Pyongyang. The resolution urges Pyongyang to resume “full and effective implementation” of the agency’s nonproliferation safeguards, AP reported (George Jahn, Associated Press/Yahoo!News, Oct. 1). The top U.S. nuclear negotiator said Thursday that disagreements among the six countries negotiating a disarmament deal are likely to arise once the question of civilian nuclear activities is addressed in detail, the Yonhap news agency reported. “Down the road ... differences will emerge,” said Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill. “There is no disagreement on the need for them (North Korea) to first to get out of this nuclear business,” Hill said at a Senate hearing (Yonhap I, Sept. 30). Hill also said both North Korea and South Korea would be subject to inspections to confirm that the Korean Peninsula is free of nuclear weapons, Yonhap reported. “You know, we have to make absolutely clear that there are no nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula,” Hill said. “We have said there aren’t any nuclear weapons in South Korea,” he said (Yonhap II, Sept. 30). A senior U.S. official said negotiations leading to last month’s Beijing agreement featured tough bargaining by Wu Dawei, China’s chief negotiator, Newsweek reported today (see GSN, Sept. 19). The draft statement presented by Beijing alluded to provision of a light-water nuclear energy reactor to Pyongyang in exchange for dismantling its weapons program, the official said. “This is the final draft,” Wu told the U.S. delegation, according to the official. “Take it or leave it.” When Hill consulted with Washington the next day, senior officials recoiled at the draft language. The Chinese delegation, however, would not back down. U.S. officials also realized that South Korea was no longer securely on their side. The South Korean delegation even stayed in a different Beijing hotel than the U.S. and Japanese negotiators, Newsweek reported. Hill was also stunned when Seoul officially raised the light-water-reactor issue. “We said if we reject [the draft], we could find ourselves completely isolated or in a minority,” said the U.S. official. “We could get blamed for the talks’ breaking down.” Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice finally agreed to accept the draft provided that each party could issue separate statements clarifying their positions on sequencing of disarmament and rewards. “The Chinese understand they hold more cards here,” said Jonathan Pollack of the U.S. Naval War College. “America is a little distracted these days and China knows that” (Hirsch/Lieu, Newsweek, Oct. 3).
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