US diplomatic experts speak on need for dialogue with North Korea

Posted on : 2013-03-09 12:25 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Stephen Bosworth argues for engagement on a broader basis than simple denuclearization
 US envoy on North Korea Glyn Davies takes questions from reporters
US envoy on North Korea Glyn Davies takes questions from reporters

By Park Hyun, Washington correspondent

In a hearing on North Korean policy held in the US Senate Foreign Affairs Committee on Mar. 7 (EST), current and former representatives at the six-party talks spoke of the necessity of dialogue with North Korea.

Glyn T. Davies, the US State Department's special representative for North Korea, was among those testifying at the hearing. "The Obama administration's dual-track policy of engagement and pressure toward the DPRK reflects a bipartisan recognition that only a policy of openness to dialogue when possible, combined with sustained, robust pressure through sanctions when necessary, can maximize prospects for progress in denuclearizing North Korea," said Davies.

"Sanctions are not a punitive measure, but rather a tool to impede the development of North Korea's nuclear and missile programs...as well as to make clear the costs of North Korea's defiance of its international obligations," Davies said.

"Working toward our endgame the verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner will require an openness to meaningful dialogue with the DPRK." He added, however, that "the real choice is up to Pyongyang."

These remarks seem to indicate the intention to use the UN Security Council resolution to put pressure on North Korea while at the same time leaving open the possibility of dialogue.

Davies also outlined several important principles for US policy toward North Korea. He said that the US will not recognize North Korea as a nuclear state, that it will not reward North Korea for bad behavior, that US-North Korea relations cannot fundamentally improve without improvement in inter-Korean relations and human rights, and that the US will not tolerate the North provoking neighboring countries.

Stephen Bosworth, Davies' predecessor as special representative for North Korea, also predicted that the US and North Korea will return to the table for talks. "My own personal view is that at some point, I can’t say exactly when, but sooner rather than later, we [the US] will come back to an effort to engage with North Korea. In some manner, only because the alternatives are so bleak."

"The question that will exist at that time is, engage on what basis? Do we again seek to engage on the basis of denuclearization, pretty much by itself, at least as a primary objective, or do we seek to engage on a broader basis, going back for example to the Joint Statement negotiated in the six-party process back in September of 2005, in which all parties signed on to a four-goal, four-objective formulation: denuclearization, a peace treaty to replace the armistice of 1953, an establishment of diplomatic relations among all parties concerned, an agreement to provide energy and economic assistance to North Korea.”

Bosworth added, “In my view, it would be more productive to seek for the outset to engage with North Korea on the basis of that broader agenda.”

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