ID :
41215
Sat, 01/17/2009 - 17:48
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/41215
The shortlink copeid
2nd LD N. Korea says it may retain nuclear weapons after normalized ties with US
SEOUL, Jan. 17 (Yonhap) -- In an apparent message to U.S. President-elect Barack Obama who will take office next week, North Korea said Saturday it may not give up its nuclear weapons even if Washington normalizes relations with it.
"Normalization of diplomatic relations and the nuclear issue are entirely
different issues," a spokesman for the North's foreign ministry said in a
statement, declaring that Pyongyang will keep its nuclear capability until it
feels safe from what it called the ever-present U.S. nuclear threat.
"We can live without normalized relations with the United States but can't live
without nuclear deterrence. That is the reality of Korea today," he said.
The statement confirmed North Korea's current policy but comes ahead of Obama's
Jan. 20 inauguration. In a departure from the policy of current U.S. President
George W. Bush, Obama has voiced the usefulness of direct dialogue with Pyongyang
to resolve the nuclear issue.
"Even if the DPRK-U.S. normalization of relations is achieved, our status as a
nuclear weapons state will never founder as long as the U.S. nuclear threat
remains even a bit," said the statement, carried by the country's Korean News
Agency monitored in Seoul.
The DPRK, a short for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, is North Korea's
official name.
South Korean analyst agree that the North's statement is meant for the incoming
U.S. government.
"This is a message from North Korea to Obama," Paik Hak-soon, a senior researcher
at Sejong Institute, said, "that North Korea wants a package deal and a more
intense interest from the new U.S. president."
Kim Young-soo, a political science professor at Seoul's Sogang University, said,
"North Korea is expressing its hope this way that Washington will be more
aggressive in engaging in talks with it."
The North's comment comes amid a stalemate in six-nation talks aimed at ending
the North's nuclear weapons program. It also follows a U.S. statement earlier
this week that calls on Pyongyang to move forward in the talks if it hopes to
normalize its ties with the international community, including Washington.
North Korea has confirmed its commitment to a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula but
disagreed over how to verify its nuclear declaration made in June.
North Korea conducted its first nuclear test in 2006.
samkim@yna.co.kr
hkim@yna.co.kr
"Normalization of diplomatic relations and the nuclear issue are entirely
different issues," a spokesman for the North's foreign ministry said in a
statement, declaring that Pyongyang will keep its nuclear capability until it
feels safe from what it called the ever-present U.S. nuclear threat.
"We can live without normalized relations with the United States but can't live
without nuclear deterrence. That is the reality of Korea today," he said.
The statement confirmed North Korea's current policy but comes ahead of Obama's
Jan. 20 inauguration. In a departure from the policy of current U.S. President
George W. Bush, Obama has voiced the usefulness of direct dialogue with Pyongyang
to resolve the nuclear issue.
"Even if the DPRK-U.S. normalization of relations is achieved, our status as a
nuclear weapons state will never founder as long as the U.S. nuclear threat
remains even a bit," said the statement, carried by the country's Korean News
Agency monitored in Seoul.
The DPRK, a short for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, is North Korea's
official name.
South Korean analyst agree that the North's statement is meant for the incoming
U.S. government.
"This is a message from North Korea to Obama," Paik Hak-soon, a senior researcher
at Sejong Institute, said, "that North Korea wants a package deal and a more
intense interest from the new U.S. president."
Kim Young-soo, a political science professor at Seoul's Sogang University, said,
"North Korea is expressing its hope this way that Washington will be more
aggressive in engaging in talks with it."
The North's comment comes amid a stalemate in six-nation talks aimed at ending
the North's nuclear weapons program. It also follows a U.S. statement earlier
this week that calls on Pyongyang to move forward in the talks if it hopes to
normalize its ties with the international community, including Washington.
North Korea has confirmed its commitment to a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula but
disagreed over how to verify its nuclear declaration made in June.
North Korea conducted its first nuclear test in 2006.
samkim@yna.co.kr
hkim@yna.co.kr
