North Korea's
Nuke Gambit

UNSC imposes sanctions ; South Korea to keep revised Gaesung Ind. Complex, Mt.Geumgang tourism

The unpredictable North Korea stunned the world again on 0ct.9 by blasting an experimental underground nuclear device, backing up its announcement six days ago that it will conduct the test with action. North Korea's Foreign Ministry announced on TV that North Korea now has what it should have to defend against foreign aggressions and the nuke weapons will ensure its sovereignty forever.
The entire world condemned the North Korean action as an act disturbing world peace. President Roh Moo-hyun said North Korea's claim on its need for nuclear weapons to defend itself from foreign aggressions are far exaggerated, meaning that the North didn't have to development nuclear arms for its security. U.S. President George W. Bush denounced that the nuclear test is provocative to the peace-loving international society, calling on N.Korea to return to the six-party talks immediately. Japanese Prime Minister Shinjo Abe said a nuclear North Korea is unacceptable and his country will go any lengths to have the country to forfeit its nuclear arms. The new Japanese leader was on a visit to Seoul to mend diplomatic fences with South Korea riled by his predecessor's repeated visit to Yasukuni shrine to pay respect to Japan's war dead including those responsible for igniting the Pacific war. He came to meet with President Roh Moo-hyun from Beijing where he met with Chinese top leaders including President Hu Jintao to discuss ways to improve their bilateral relations and North Korea.
Even China and Russia, traditional allies of North Korea quickly joined other countries to condemn the nuclear test as undermining world peace. China, especially was hurt badly, reportedly, because N.Korea went ahead with the nuke experiment despite the advice from its major ally not to do so.
U.S. UN envoy John Bolton and Japanese UN envoy Genji Oshima moved quickly to put together a draft on UN sanctions on the "rogue"state, which included UN Charter provision 7 allowing military action.
They pushed hard to persuade representatives of 15 countries that make up the UN Security Council. But Russia and China opposed the military intervention in the draft.
President Roh traveled to Beijing on Oct. 13 and discussed North Korea with Chinese President Hu Jintao. They agreed that sanctions should be accompanied by dialogue to persuade North Korea to disarm. Roh also got the same agreement in his phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the following day.
On Oct. 15(Korean time), six days after the nuke test, the UN Security Council unanimously approved the draft became known as UNSC Resolution 1718. One section of the resolution calls for cargo going in and out of North Korea to be searched for prohibited items that could be used in weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons. "The ball is in North Korea's court to see what direction we take from here,"Bolton said on CNN's program. North Korean UN Ambassador Pak Gil-yon immediately rejected the resolution at a press briefing followed soon after he walked out of the Security Council meeting, calling it "gangster-like."The European Union also joined the UNSC in calling on North Korea to abandon its nuclear programs and promote world peace by returning to the six-party talks through a statement.
But Chinese UN envoy Wang Guangya told the press immediately after the security council approved the resolution that China would not intercept North Korean vessels and inspect their cargoes by force because it would lead to negative consequences and China is North Korea's biggest trade partner. Russian UN envoy Vitaly Churkin made similar remarks, raising doubts about a full implementation of the UN sanctions.
North Korea has set off a flurry of diplomatic activities around the world, especially for the United States, Japan, China and Korea.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice flew to Tokyo Oct. 18 and met with her Japanese counterpart Taro Aso. They agreed on joint steps to intercept and inspect North Korean vessels suspected of carrying high-tech arms including nuclear weapons on high seas.
On the reports that North Korea is preparing for the second nuclear test, Secretary Rice warned that North Korea should not do that, saying that the U.S. will come up with tougher measures. Japanese Foreign Minister Aso also warned that Japan will also do its best to prevent the move by applying very harsh measures including total ban on any form of exchange with North Korea. But the CNN and NBC reports that North Korea notified China of its forthcoming test have turned out to be wrong. The Korean government said it had no knowledge of the North preparing for the second nuke test.
Secretary Rice flew into Seoul from Tokyo the next day and met with President Roh and Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon, who also is the UN Secretary-General designate. She later was joined by Japanese Foreign Minister Aso and held talks with Ban and Aso.
Ban and Rice in their talks agreed that UNSC resolution should be respected and supported, called on North Korea to return to the six party talks and implement the Sept. 19 joint statement and also agreed to pressure the North to induce it to abandon nuclear arms.
But the two ministers failed to agree on Korea's participation in the Proliferation Security Initiative and closing down the Gaesung Industrial Park and the Mt. Geumgang Tourism.
Secretary Rice brought the issue in her meeting with President Roh later in the day, but failed to narrow the differences with President Roh stressing that he is fearful that they will escalate tensions. Rice stressed that Korea's participation in the expanded PSI is closely related to the UNSC sanctions on inspection on suspected North Korean vessels. Foreign Minister Ban answered that the Korean government will study the issue, citing domestic public fear for armed confrontation on the Korean Peninsula.
The U.S. official argued that money flowing into the North should be stopped by any means including the industrial complex and the tourism business since they might be used by the North to develop weapons of mass destruction. But Ban said the two inter-Korean business projects will be sustained with readjustment in the tourism business in accordance with the demand by the international community and the UNSC resolution.
Foreign Ministers of the U.S., Japan and Korea in a joint meeting in the evening of Oct. 19, at the Foreign Minister's official residence in Seoul, agreed that they will not recognize North Korea as a nuclear nation, even though it has successfully conducted a nuclear test. The three ministers also have agreed to faithfully and jointly implement the UNSC sanctions on North Korea.
A New York Times report datelined in Seoul said Secretary Rice was dismayed by Foreign Minister Ban's statement to the press that he explained fully the positive side of the industrial complex and the symbolism of the tourism project to the U.S. official, but she did not express her displeasure and instead stressed the importance of U.S.-Korea alliance.
In the meantime, an AP report datelined Seoul on Oct. 20, said North Korean leader Kim Jong-il expressed regret about his country's nuclear test to a Chinese delegation and said Pyeongyang would return to international nuclear talks if Washington backs off a campaign to financially isolate the country, quoting a Chosun Ilbo report from its correspondent in Beijing.
"If the U.S. makes a concession to some degree, we will also make a concession to some degree, whether it be bilateral talks or six-party talks,"Kim was quoted as telling a Chinese envoy, the paper reported, citing a diplomatic source in China.
The delegation led by State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan met Kim on Oct 26 and returned to Beijing later that day to Beijing-ahead of U.S. Secretary of State Rice's arrival in the Chinese capital on Friday. Secretary Rice later said she didn't hear anything about Kim Jong Il's remark that North Korean would not hold nuke tests any more from Tang Jiaxuan she met him in Beijing.
The Wall Street Journal in its Asia edition Oct. 20 reported that many Chinese banks suspended transactions with North Korea. The development is likely to deal a big blow to North Korea. Yonhap New Agency said China also banned Chinese travel to North Korea, including even for the purpose of marketing survey, quoting an official of a travel agency in Dandung, China, a border city just across from Sinuiju City in North Korea. Travel agencies in the city said Chinese tourists are banned from traveling to North Korea from August 12 due to the shortage of accommodation in North Korea. nw

(photos from above) UN Security Council in session unanimously approved the draft sanctions on North Korea; U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso and South Korean Foreign Minister and UN Secretary-General-elect Ban Ki-moon join hands before starting their joint meeting Oct. 19 in Seoul; North Korean Leader Kim Jong-il.