Op-Ed Contributor - North Korea's Stacked Deck

By Art Brown
Published July 15, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/15/opinion/15brown.html?scp=2&sq=north%20korea&st=cse

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"If this were high-stakes poker, the North Koreans would be biting their lips to hide their smiles at the cards in their hands.

"As it stands now, we have agreed to ship North Korea a million new tons of fuel oil, released Mr. Kim from the handcuffs of our Trading With the Enemy Act, and — within the legally mandated 45 days — will throw in other goodies that come with removing North Korea from the State Department’s state-sponsor-of-terrorism list. This comes on top of the American decision last year to allow the North Koreans to transfer their tainted money out of a bank in Macao.

"But the topper is that Kim Jong-il knows he still gets to keep his stockpile of plutonium and even hang on to his existing rack of nuclear weapons (minus the one he tested in October 2006 to set the tone of the game)."

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Beyond the Border: North Korea

McCain and Obama on North Korea

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/26/mccain-and-obama-on-north-korea/?scp=1-b&sq=north+korea&st=nyt

Full Text of McCain Statement:

“The announcement today that North Korea has provided information concerning elements of its nuclear program is a modest step forward, as will be the destruction of the disabled cooling tower of Yongbyon. But it is only a step covering one part of North Korea’s nuclear activities. It is important to remember our goal has been the full, permanent and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. That must remain our goal. The Six Party agreement called for North Korea to make a full declaration of all its nuclear weapons and nuclear programs. Many questions remain about North Korea’s programs, including the disposition of plutonium at Yongbyon, the number and status of nuclear weapons, the nature of the highly-enriched uranium program, and the extent of proliferation activities in countries like Syria. I also want to make sure we fully account for the legitimate concerns of our South Korean and Japanese allies as we move forward. I understand certain sanctions were lifted today, some may be lifted in 45 days, and others remain in place.

“As we review this declaration and attempt to verify North Korean claims, we must keep diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea to meet all of its obligations under the Six Party agreement, including denuclearization. If we are unable to fully verify the declaration submitted today and if I am not satisfied with the verification mechanisms developed, I would not support the easing of sanctions on North Korea.”

Full Text of Obama Statement:

“This is a step forward, and there will be many more steps to take in the days ahead. Critical questions remain unanswered. We still have not verified the accuracy of the North Korean declaration. We must confirm the full extent of North Korea’s past plutonium production. We must also confirm its uranium enrichment activities, and get answers to disturbing questions about its proliferation activities with other countries, including Syria.

“The declaration has not yet been made available, so Congress has not had a chance to review it. Before weighing in on North Korea’s removal from the list of state sponsors of terrorism, Congress must take the next 45 days to examine the adequacy of the North Korean declaration and verification procedures. Sanctions are a critical part of our leverage to pressure North Korea to act. They should only be lifted based on North Korean performance. If the North Koreans do not meet their obligations, we should move quickly to re-impose sanctions that have been waived, and consider new restrictions going forward.

“We should continue to pursue the kind of direct and aggressive diplomacy with North Korea that can yield results. The objective must be clear: the complete and verifiable elimination of North Korea’s nuclear weapons programs, which only expanded while we refused to talk. As we move forward, we must not cede our leverage in these negotiations unless it is clear that North Korea is living up to its obligations.

“As President, I will work from the very beginning of my term in office to secure the American people and our interests in this vital region. We must work with diligence and determination with our friends and allies to end this dangerous threat, and to secure a lasting peace on the Korean peninsula.”

NKorea blames Skorea for tourist death

By Associated Press
July 12, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-Koreas-Relations.html?_r=1&scp=8&sq=north+korea&st=nyt&oref=login

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- North Korea said South Korea was to blame for the shooting death of a South Korean tourist in the communist nation, demanding an apology Saturday and saying it would ban visits to a mountain resort where Seoul has already suspended tours since the killing.

The North also rejected a South Korean request for investigators to visit the scene of Friday's shooting, claiming it has already clarified what happened with the South Korean tour company that runs the trips to the mountain on the peninsula's eastern coast.

Pyongyang's stance was certain to exacerbate tensions between the Koreas, which have flared since South Korea's new conservative President Lee Myung-bak took office in February.

Earlier on Saturday, Lee denounced the killing of 53-year-old housewife Park Wang-ja and urged the North to cooperate in the investigation.

''What cannot and should not happen has happened,'' Lee told a security ministers' meeting, according to his office.

''I can't understand that they shot a civilian tourist'' at a time of the day when it is possible to discern she is a civilian, Lee said. He also urged Pyongyang to ''actively cooperate'' in an investigation.

But in the statement from a North Korean tourism bureau, Pyongyang said the tourist ''intruded deep into the area under the military control of the North side all alone at dawn,'' noting that even her ''shoes got wet.''

The North said its soldier spotted the tourist and ordered her to stop, but that she ran away. The soldier ''repeatedly shouted'' at her to stop and fired warning shots, but then ''could not but open fire'' at the woman, according to the statement from the Guidance Bureau for Comprehensive Development of Scenic Spots.

''The responsibility for the incident entirely rests with the South side,'' the bureau said in the statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.

The statement called for Seoul to apologize and take measures to prevent it from happening again.

Yonhap news agency cited a tourist who returned from the resort Friday as saying he saw a middle-aged woman dressed in black walking along the beach before hearing two gunshots and a scream about 10 minutes later.

''When I looked at the direction where the gunshots were heard, there was one person collapsed and three soldiers ran out of a forest and touched the person with their feet as if trying to see if that person is alive,'' Yonhap quoted 23-year-old Lee In-bok, a college student, as saying.

Lee told Yonhap that he and five others witnessed the incident while at the beach to watch the sunrise and that they were about 300 meters away.

Park's husband, Bang Young-min, 53, said he hopes for the truth of what happened.

''I hope all suspicions would be resolved ... so that the souls of the deceased can rest in peace,'' he said at a hospital in Seoul where Park's body was kept for a funeral.

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Associated Press writer Burt Herman contributed to this report.