N. Korea reconfirms to Russia decision to quit nuke talks

(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with Russian minister's arrival in Seoul, Medvedev's
letter to N. Korean leader)
By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, April 24 (Yonhap) -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived here
on Friday after a two-day trip to Pyongyang, where he apparently struggled to
persuade North Korea to return to the six-way talks on its nuclear program.

Earlier in the day, Lavrov delivered Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's letter
to the North's leader Kim Jong-il through the country's ceremonial head of state,
Kim Yong-nam, according to Pyongyang's official media, indicating Kim might have
rejected the minister's request for a meeting.
If true, it could lend credence to media speculation that North Korea is
displeased by Moscow's approval of a U.N. Security Council document condemning
Pyongyang's recent rocket launch, and that relations between the traditional
allies have soured. It is fairly unusual for a visiting Russian foreign minister
to not meet the North Korean leader. Lavrov met Kim when he traveled to Pyongyang
in 2004.
The (North) Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) did not elaborate on the contents
of the letter from Medvedev.
The KCNA reported earlier that North Korean officials reaffirmed their country's
decision to quit the six-way during meetings with the Russian minister.
"The Russian side reconfirmed its stand against U.N. sanctions against the DPRK
and paid attention to the DPRK's stand that there is no need to hold the
six-party talks any longer," the North's foreign ministry spokesman told the
KCNA, using the acronym for the country's official name, the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea.
The North announced last week that it will never return to negotiations and will
switch its nearly disabled nuclear facilities in Yongbyon back on to protest the
U.N.'s strongly worded statement against its April 5 rocket launch. North Korea
claimed it sent a satellite into orbit, but the U.S. and its allies see it as a
cover for a long-range missile test.
"Both sides recognized that a satellite launch is a sovereign right of each
country," the spokesman added.
Lavrov, the first high-level foreign official to visit North Korea since the
rocket launch, reportedly tried to coax Pyongyang back to the negotiating table.
The latest round of the six-party talks, also involving the U.S., China, and
Japan, were held in December, but produced no fresh agreement due to disputes
over how to inspect the North's nuclear sites.
He was skeptical that there would be imminent progress, however.
"We don't expect any immediate breakthroughs. It's a difficult process," Lavrov
was quoted as saying by Russia's official news agency after meeting with his
North Korean counterpart, Pak Ui-chun, on Thursday. "We should not yield to
emotions; hopefully we will be able to overcome this crisis."
In Seoul, Lavrov will hold talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan
later Friday, followed by a joint press conference. He plans to pay a courtesy
call on President Lee Myung-bak on Saturday before his departure.
Lavrov's trip to the two Koreas comes amid the U.N.'s move to blacklist a set of
North Korean firms suspected of being involved in the trade of missiles and
weapons of mass destruction.
The U.N. Security Council's presidential statement against the North's rocket
launch calls for a sanctions committee to draw up the list of North Korean
entities by April 24. If it fails to meet the deadline, the 15-member council
will step in to finalize the list by April 30.
The U.S. and Japan presented their own lists of about a dozen North Korean firms
to face an asset freeze, but China and Russia want the number of targeted
companies to be reduced, according to U.N. sources.
lcd@yna.co.kr
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