N. Korea, U.N. Command set for high-level military talks at border

(ATTN: ADDS background in last 4 paras; RECASTS lead)
By Sam Kim
SEOUL, March 5 (Yonhap) -- North Korea agreed Thursday to attend military talks
with the U.S.-led U.N. Command (UNC) a day later at the truce village straddling
the divided Koreas, a statement said, despite a U.S. refusal to cancel a
forthcoming defense drill with South Korea.

The two sides held a series of meetings this week as tension mounts on the Korean
Peninsula that remains technically at war after the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a
truce rather than a peace treaty.
North Korea has recently threatened armed conflict with South Korea, accusing it
of wrecking cross-border rapprochement. It also appears to be preparing to
test-fire a ballistic missile capable of hitting Alaska.
The UNC, backed by 28,500 U.S. troops in South Korea, held the first
general-grade talks with North Korea in over six years at the borderline village
of Panmunjom on Monday.
North Korea demanded at the meeting that South Korea and the U.S. cancel their
upcoming annual military drill, calling it a preparation for invasion, according
to South Korean officials.
Despite the U.S. dismissal of the claim, North Korea "accepted the UNC proposal
for the Friday general officer talks," the UNC said in a statement.
The sides held a colonel-level meeting Thursday to "develop agenda items and
establish administrative protocol for the upcoming general talks," it said.
The meeting lasted 45 minutes, a South Korean official said, speaking on
customary condition of anonymity. Monday's talks ended in a little longer than
half an hour.
The Friday meeting will again be attended by U.S. Maj. Gen. Johnny Weida, who
will head the UNC delegation consisting of lower-ranking South Korean, British
and New Zealand military officers. The UNC statement did not give details on
their North Korean counterparts.
"The purpose of the meetings is to discuss practical armistice-related issues,
reaffirm commitment to the general officer forum, and reduce tension on the
Korean Peninsula," the statement said.
The talks come just days before North Korea holds its rubber-stamp parliamentary
elections on March 8. The event has been delayed since last year after North
Korean leader Kim Jong-il reportedly suffered a stroke in summer.
The joint South Korea-U.S. military exercise, Key Resolve and Foal Eagle, will
begin a day after the elections, ending on March 20. The drill is aimed at honing
the capabilities of the allies to quickly deploy forces to the frontlines should
North Korea provoke a war.
The UNC led multinational forces to fight on the South Korean side in the Korean
War. It has since monitored the truce, holding over a dozen rounds of talks with
North Korea since the 1990's.
Pyongyang routinely argues the UNC masks U.S. intentions for invasion, demanding
its dismantlement.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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