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North Korea’s chief six-party talk negotiator

　Chinese chief negotiator for the six-party talks Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei will visit North Korea on Monday. This is the first visit by a high-ranking North Korean official since North Korea’s long-range rocket launch on April 5 and second nuclear test on May 25.

　A diplomatic source familiar with Sino-North Korean relations said on Sunday that he understood Wu planned to visit Pyongyang for a week starting Monday, during which time he would meet with figures like Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan, North Korea’s chief six-party talk negotiator, to coordinate on the nuclear issue. The source added that due to former U.S. president Bill Clinton’s visit to North Korea earlier this month, China’s diplomatic space for moving on negotiations has widened.

　China has been quite careful about official Sino-North Korean contacts between high-ranking officials since North Korea’s second nuclear test, withdrawing a plan to send a special envoy to Pyongyang. Accordingly, observers are suggesting Wu’s visit could be interpreted as China‘s step towards initiating full-scale moves to change the current situation. Wu’s visit follows Clinton’s visit to North Korea and some are saying it could be seen as part of a relay race by the major countries in the six-party talks to bring North Korea back to the negotiating table.

　Wu is expected to sound out North Korea’s intention to denuclearize and the possibility of its return to the six-party talks. It also appears he will exchange views over North Korea’s position on the comprehensive deal offered by the U.S.

　One cannot exclude the possibility that Wu’s visit is preparing the ground for sending a special envoy to North korea, a plan that was suspended with North Korea’s nuclear test. However, since the exchange of envoys between North Korea and China have already been discussed at the “party to party” level between the North Korea’s Workers Party of Korea and the Chinese Communist Party without success, the likelihood for moves of that kind are relatively low.

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