Rice rules out meeting N.K. officials

Posted on : 2008-02-23 11:12 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice ruled out any meetings with North Korean officials during her Asia travel starting Saturday, saying it is not "useful at this time."

"Everybody knows what needs to happen," she said at a news conference Friday, referring to North Korea's obligation to disclose in full its nuclear programs as part of six-nation agreements.

She said it was a "good thing" that the New York Philharmonic would perform in Pyongyang next week, and that she hopes this will have a positive effect, but added she will not overestimate the impact.

"The North Korean regime is still the North Korean regime," she said, "and so I don't think we should get carried away with what listening to Dvorak is going to do in North Korea."

Rice visits South Korea, China and Japan on a six-day itinerary that includes attending the inauguration of South Korea's new president, Lee Myung-bak, on Monday. The six-party process on denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, currently stalled by Pyongyang's inaction, is expected to be a central issue as she visits capitals of the three countries involved in the process.

The U.S., Russia and North Korea are also members of the negotiations.

Through a series of agreements reached since September 2005, the six nations laid out a roadmap leading eventually to dismantlement of North Korea's atomic weapons and programs. As interim steps, Pyongyang was required to disable its nuclear reactor that has been churning out weapons-grade plutonium and auxiliary installations that were turning the material into bombs.

Pyongyang was also to submit a declaration detailing its weapons program and any proliferation activities.

But the deadline for both, the end of 2007, passed without either being completed. While disablement also missed the agreed timetable, the U.S. and other six-party partners say it is due mostly to technical problems and that they are satisfied with the progress there.

But efforts to get North Korea's declaration have been snagged by the country's refusal to address questions about its alleged uranium enrichment program, an alternative to making nuclear weapons, and suspected transfer of nuclear technology overseas.

In the meantime, speculation persisted that Rice might meet with North Koreans to seek a breakthrough in the six-party talks.

"I don't plan to," said Rice. "I just don't think that it's something that's useful at this time or that is warranted."

The secretary said she wants to use the trip to particularly address proliferation issues, "because I am of a mind that we have the right group of countries at the table" to address them.

"I will be carrying that message and discussing that with our partners," she said.

While she is in Asia, the New York Philharmonic will be performing in Pyongyang on Tuesday in an event compared to the ping-pong diplomacy with China. Despite much controversy and opposition even from within, the world-class orchestra accepted Pyongyang's invitation.

Rice said she doubted she will be able to watch the broadcast performance but supports the effort with reservations.

"My hope is that over time, the interaction with the outside world, indeed the kinds of things that we are doing in the six-party talks...which is that there should be more engagement in opening up of North Korea to the outside world, will in fact have an effect," she said.

"But I don't want to overestimate the impact of something like this."



WASHINGTON, Feb. 22 (Yonhap)

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