N. Korea, U.N. Command to hold more military talks this week: officials

(ATTN: RECASTS lead, headline; ADDS comment in para 6, background in last 3 paras;
RESTRUCTURES; TRIMS)
By Sam Kim
SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- North Korea and the U.S.-led United Nations Command
will hold a series of additional meetings this week to discuss ways to alleviate
tension on the divided peninsula, officials said Tuesday.
North Korea opened the first general-level talks with the U.N. Command in nearly
seven years on Monday at the borderline truce village of Panmunjom.
The U.N. Command monitors the ceasefire that ended the 1950-53 Korean War, and is
led by an American commander who controls the 28,500 U.S. troops stationed in
South Korea.
In Monday's meeting that lasted a little more than 30 minutes, the North demanded
South Korea and the U.S. cancel their joint annual drill set for March 9-20,
according to South Korean officials.
North Korea and the U.N. Command will reopen their talks on Wednesday and Friday,
South Korean officials said on condition of anonymity.
"The sides will continue their talks that were cut short on Monday, and discuss
how they can temper their hostilities," an official said, declining to elaborate.
Kim Yong-kyu, a spokesman for U.S. Forces Korea, confirmed the talks are
scheduled for this week, adding colonel-level talks will precede general-level
discussions.
The meetings come as North Korea defies U.S. warnings not to launch what appears
to be a ballistic missile capable of reaching Alaska. The communist state claims
it is readying to launch a communications satellite.
Pyongyang has also declared void all its past military agreements with Seoul,
warning of an armed clash along their U.N.-drawn western sea border.
North Korea on Saturday condemned the U.S., saying its troops have increased
provocative moves inside the Demilitarized Zone. The U.S. said it has conducted
routine monitoring activities.
The two sides remain at odds in six-nation talks aimed at dismantling the North's
nuclear weapons programs. Pyongyang has refused to endorse a U.S. proposal aimed
at verifying its past atomic activities.
North Korea routinely voices criticism over joint South Korea-U.S. defense
drills, accusing the two countries of preparing for an invasion. The allies say
their Key Resolve and Foal Eagle exercise is defense-oriented.
Pyongyang has cut off all dialogue with Seoul over the past year. It accuses
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak -- who took office last year with a pledge
to get tougher on Pyongyang -- of sympathizing with U.S. hardliners.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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