hankyoreh

Tuesday

U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy Stephen Bosworth wrapped up his tour of South Korea, China and Japan with a visit to Japan on Tuesday. In a meeting last Friday with Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Yu Myung-hwan, Bosworth said that while a lot of things have happened, he did not think much had changed. He seemed to be referring to Obama administration’s extension of a hand for dialogue, and North Korea’s brandishing of its fists since the adoption of a president’s statement by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in response to North Korea’s April 5 rocket launch. Indeed, some analysts say that while the U.S. is emphasizing a restoration of the six-party talks, North Korea regards the multilateral framework as a “shattered bowl.” Although the distance between the two parties appears vast, in some regards, Bosworth’s East Asia tour can be seen as a process of narrowing that divide.

First, the tour plays a necessary part in the process to obtain consent from South Korea and Japan for direct dialogue between North Korea and the U.S. On April 24, President Obama spoke to Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso over the phone and gained his consent for such a dialogue on the condition that the U.S. urges North Korea to return to the six-party talks. The South Korean government expressed a position of support as well, with South Korea’s top delegate to the six party talks Wi Sung Lac saying in a May 7 interview with the Financial Times that bilateral talks between the U.S. and North Korea could be “useful as long as it serves as a conduit for a return to six-party talks.” The U.S. has effectively broadened the scope of its movement with the consent of its two allies.

Second, the tour allows the U.S. to gauge China’s approach and involvement. President Obama both sent Bosworth to China and spoke separately by phone on May 6 with President Hu Jintao. President Obama is reported to have expressed “concern” about North Korea’s recent activities in this conversation, which analysts are interpreting as a request for China to intercede. Since North Korea’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement on April 14 rejecting the six-party talks in protest of the UNSC president’s statement, some experts expect that a “new form of dialogue” will be needed rather than a resumption of the six-party talks. A high-ranking U.S. official who visited South Korea late last month reportedly said, “The U.S. needs to discuss the nuclear issue and other North Korea-related cases through new forms of multilateral discussion rather than initiating bilateral dialogue with Pyongyang.” Experts are interpreting this as favoring a tripartite framework that includes the U.S., China and North Korea so while the contents of the discussion with China has not yet been disclosed, they are of great significance.

According to the Monday’s content of the Choson Sinbo, the official publication of the pro-Pyongyang Chongryeon, the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, in addition to the form of the dialogue, an equally contentious issue between North Korea and the U.S. is the question of “what will be discussed and what problems resolved.” In particular, the content suggests the question North Korea is likely asking revolves around the U.S. definition of North Korea‘s rocket launch, and what kind of dialogue the U.S. is pursuing as it remains stuck in an antagonistic mind set that applies punishment for what it defines as a provocation. Experts are reading irony into the May 8 statement by a North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson that “nothing will come of a meeting with a party that is continuously hostile to us.” To borrow the expression used by the Choson Sinbo, Pyongyang is calling for “a new framework in diplomacy.” This means that a response is required from the U.S, but as government authorities indicate the problem with this is that North Korea “is coming out with concepts that are too large.”

If North Korea and the U.S. do enter into discussions, it could result in a deal such as the one found in the October 2000 joint communique issued by the two countries during the Clinton administration. For that to happen, a period of beating around the bush may be necessary.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]