Global Security Newswire

North Korea today rejected a U.S.-backed proposal to defuse the nuclear standoff on the Korean Peninsula and restart six-nation talks (see GSN, Dec. 12).

“If the United States wants a ‘complete, verifiable and irrevocable’ dismantling of our nuclear program, we also have the right to demand a ‘complete, verifiable and irrevocable’ security assurance from the United States,” said a commentary by the state-run Rodong Sinmun newspaper. “The United States’ strategy of delaying talks will only lead us to continue to strengthen our nuclear deterrent force,” the commentary added.

Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing called U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and urged the United States to take a more flexible stance toward the standoff (Sang-hun Choe, Associated Press/Philadelphia Inquirer, Dec. 15).

North Korea also criticized Washington for refusing to address its own proposal.

“But the U.S. in its proposal sent through a channel did not mention the D.P.R.K.-proposed simultaneous package solution at all but only asserted that the D.P.R.K. should scrap nuclear weapons program first,’” the Rodong Sinmun commentary said (Sang-hun Choe, Associated Press/Yahoo!News, Dec. 15).