N. Korea may conduct second nuke test: think tank

By Hwang Doo-hyong
WASHINGTON, March 4 (Yonhap) -- North Korea may conduct a second nuclear test in
the near future to increase its bargaining power in negotiating with the United
States, a private think tank said Wednesday.

"The new administration and Congress should not be surprised if Pyongyang
precipitates a crisis, perhaps in the near term, to elevate its importance in a
crowded U.S. foreign policy agenda," the Seattle-based National Bureau of Asian
Research said in a report titled "Shock of the New: Congress and Asia in 2009."
"Such a crisis could include a second nuclear test or escalation of military
tension with South Korea or Japan," the report said.
North Korea detonated its first nuclear device in October 2006, prompting the
reluctant Bush administration to actively engage the reclusive communist state to
sign a denuclearization deal months later.
The deal, reached through the six-nation talks hosted by Beijing, has been in
jeopardy of failing to achieve its aim as the latest round of multilateral
negotiations hit a snag in December with North Korea's refusal to agree to
inspections of its nuclear facilities.
Stephen Bosworth, U.S. President Barack Obama's special envoy on North Korea, is
currently visiting Beijing to discuss the resumption of the stalled talks.
Bosworth will also visit Tokyo and Seoul later this week to discuss with
officials on the six-way negotiations how to address North Korea's planned launch
of what it claims is a satellite.
U.S. and South Korean intelligence officials believe the North is actually
planning to test-fire a ballistic missile capable of striking Alaska.
"North Korea excels at brinkmanship," the report said. "Regime security is
Pyongyang's core goal, and North Korean elites will continue to pursue a strategy
that combines blackmail and the potential for progress on denuclearization to
secure U.S. and international resources."
hdh@yna.co.kr
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