11 November 2010
North Korea Must Show Seriousness for Talks to Resume
Washington — North Korea must show “a seriousness of purpose” before nuclear disarmament talks can resume, President Obama says.
If the North Korean regime is prepared to take that step and is willing to completely abandon a nuclear weapons and long-range missile development program, then the international community is prepared to offer substantial economic assistance, Obama said.
“We’re not interested in just going through the motions with the same result,” Obama said at a November 11 press conference in Seoul with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak. “We will continue to look for signals from the North Koreans that they’re serious.”
Obama spoke with reporters after a meeting with the South Korean president on the sidelines of the Group of 20 (G20) Summit in Seoul. Begun in 2003, the Six Party Talks — which involve South and North Korea, China, Japan, Russia and the United States — have focused on persuading North Korea to give up a weapons program in return for political and economic assistance.
Talks ended last year when the international community condemned North Korea for testing a new generation long-range missiles.
North Korea has been completing the succession of leadership from Kim Jong-Il to his youngest son, and a reduction in tensions may create willingness to resuming the Six-Party negotiations. North Korea has sent signals of a desire to return to the talks.
“President Lee and I have discussed this extensively and our belief is that there will be an appropriate time and place to re-enter into Six-Party Talks,” Obama told reporters.
Lee set South Korea’s requirements for its willingness to resume talks: “North Korea should and must show sincerity towards the Republic of Korea and to assume responsibility for what they did to the Cheonan.” The Cheonan is a South Korea naval destroyer sunk by a North Korean torpedo in March. The attack resulted in the deaths of 46 sailors.
TRADE AGREEMENT
Obama said that he and Lee talked at length about the pending U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement, and they agreed to continue the talks in Washington and Seoul. Both nations had hoped to resolve final differences during the G20 in Seoul this year, but agreed that it is more important to get the final details correct.
“We have asked our teams to work tirelessly in the coming days and weeks to get this completed,” he told reporters. Part of the agreement involves expanded exports of American automobiles and beef to South Korea.
While in Seoul, Obama also held bilateral talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao, who is coming to Washington early in 2011, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
And during the G20 talks, world leaders are working toward an agreement to reduce global economic imbalances. The United States believes such an agreement is essential to completing recovery from the 2007–2009 recession. Among the issues is setting guidelines for reducing trade imbalances and convincing nations to refrain from devaluing their currencies.
(This is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://www.america.gov)
