[ OUR OPINION ]
U.S. flexibility should
end Korea nuke crisisPRESIDENT Bush took an important step toward resolving the Korean nuclear crisis with his indication he will agree to a written promise not to attack North Korea in return for the dismantling of its nuclear program. The president wisely left his swagger and hard-liner advisers at home in turning his Asia trip into a conciliatory overture to the isolationist Korean dictatorship.
THE ISSUE
President Bush has indicated he will agree to a written promise that the U.S. will not attack N. Korea if it dismantles its nuclear program.The move followed six-nation talks in August, including North Korea's neighbors, that were themselves a significant breakthrough. Further U.S. flexibility may be needed to reach a final agreement. The Bush administration has said dismantlement must be completed prior to a promise of security, but the White House reportedly will be satisfied if Pyongyang can show "verifiable progress" has been made toward dismantling the program.
North Korea had demanded a formal nonaggression treaty, with international legal implications. Bush declared such a treaty "off the table," but added, "Perhaps there are other ways we can look at to say exactly what I said publicly on paper, with our partners' consent."
That would take the form of written assurance signed by the United States, China, Russia, Japan and South Korea that North Korea would not be attacked and for North Korea to dismantle its nuclear program. North Korea has insisted on a bilateral agreement between it and the U.S., but pressure from traditional allies Russia and China is likely to bring North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il into agreement.
The discussions occurred outside the annual Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum at Bangkok, where economic development was supposed to be the main subject. Instead, terrorism and North Korea justifiably dominated the talks.
Bush and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun issued a statement yesterday calling for a prompt resumption of the six-way talks that were held at Beijing. Such talks are expected to be held before the end of this year. The progress was not disturbed by the North's firing of a short-range, anti-ship missile later in the day as part of annual military exercises. The firing was provocative but not particularly threatening.
Neither the advancement of North Korea's nuclear program nor its intentions are clear. Kim admitted a year ago that it had violated an agreement to freeze its nuclear program in exchange for foreign aid and energy supplies and kicked out United Nations nuclear inspectors. The regime announced early this month that reprocessing of 8,000 plutonium rods was under way and its "nuclear deterrent force" was being expanded.
South Korea is confident that the North will not use nuclear weapons unless it is attacked. It is more concerned that the Kim regime will totally collapse, creating instability throughout the peninsula. Indeed, North Korea's future is unpredictable, and that makes dismantlement of its nuclear weaponry all the more paramount.
