N. Korea seeks light-water reactor in exchange for disablement

Posted on : 2007-07-21 16:59 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST

North Korea's chief nuclear envoy said Saturday his country should be given a light-water reactor in return for the dismantlement of its nuclear facilities.

"A light-water reactor should be brought in" if the North's nuclear facilities are to be dismantled, Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan told reporters at Beijing International Airport. He did not specify the number of reactors his country wanted, as he spoke in the Korean language that often leaves numbers ambiguous.

Since 2005, the North has demanded two light-water reactors, which use materials such as reprocessed uranium to generate energy but are difficult to make nuclear weapons from. The United States halted its construction of a similar type of reactor in Shinpo, North Korea in 2002, claiming it breached a 1994 agreement by clandestinely continuing with its nuclear weapons programs.

"What we're discussing right now is the current nuclear plan, in other words, the Yongbyon nuclear facility stopping its operation and ultimately getting dismantled. For this to be done, a light-water reactor should be brought in," Kim said.

Under a landmark February deal, North Korea recently shut down its nuclear reactor at Yongbyon, about 100 kilometers north of Pyeongyang, which was believed capable of producing weapons-grade plutonium. But the deal would be completed only if the North declares and dismantles all of its nuclear facilities.

Kim added his country was ready for the dismantlement but waiting for the other countries to agree to his proposal.

"It's obvious what we're supposed to do, but the other parties don't seem to be ready," he said, referring to the U.S., South Korea, China, Japan and Russia in the six-nation talks.

Kim was about to board an airplane to the communist state after the latest round of the six-party talks in Beijing.

Kim also said confidence-building measures should be implemented before the North includes its nuclear weapons in the declaration of items it is to submit to international nuclear monitors.

"It's something to wait and see until confidence is established," he said.

Kim displayed his satisfaction, however, with the results of the latest round of the six-party talks, saying, "I think the talks went well, the discussions were good and the results were not bad."

The three-day negotiations ended with no agreement on the timeline for the declaration and disablement of the North's nuclear programs, despite the North's shutdown of its nuclear facilities last week.

Kim explained that time constraints prevented the envoys from coming up with a deadline for Pyeongyang to start disabling its nuclear facilities.

"The reason we could not set the deadline for the disablement of the nuclear facilities was that we didn't have enough time," he said.

Nuclear envoys, however, agreed to hold another round, according to a press communique released at the end of the three-day negotiations.

Kim also warned Japan should step away from its current stance on North Korea, but did not elaborate.

"Japan is fostering an atmosphere that could infring on our national sovereignty. If it ever takes a step further, it will be met with a catastrophe, so be warned," he said.

As part of the February deal, Pyongyang is to be eventually rewarded with 950,000 tons of heavy fuel oil and other economic and political benefits for its complete denuclearization.
BEIJING, July 21 (Yonhap News)