(4th LD) S. Korea, U.S. issue overtures, warnings for N. Korea

(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with S. Korean envoy's remarks; CHANGES headline)
By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, May 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States agreed Friday that the
door to dialogue with North Korea should be kept open despite a salvo of threats
by Pyongyang but also warned the communist country will face "consequences" if it
puts the threats into action.
"If the North Koreans decide to carry out a second nuclear test, we will deal
with the consequences of that, and there will be consequences," Stephen Bosworth,
U.S. special representative for North Korea, told reporters after talks with
South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan on ways to resume the six-way talks
on Pyongyang's nuclear program. The negotiations also involve China, Russia, and
Japan.
Bosworth said he and the minister discussed "possible steps forward" in the
stalled denuclearization process but refused to elaborate.
The veteran diplomat admitted that little can be done to prevent the
unpredictable North from taking additional provocative steps.
"We can't control at this stage what North Korea does," he said.
Bosworth arrived here earlier in the day after a two-day stay in Beijing on a
regional tour aimed at reviving the disarmament talks, mired in deeper trouble
after the North fired a long-range rocket early last month. North Korea withdrew
from the six-year-old disarmament negotiations in anger over the U.N. Security
Council's condemnation of the launch.
Pyongyang has also reactivated its plutonium-producing reactor in Yongbyon and
threatened to conduct a second nuclear test and develop a uranium enrichment
program unless the council issues an apology. North Korea first detonated a
nuclear device at an underground facility in 2006.
Shortly before Bosworth's arrival in Seoul, North Korea's foreign ministry issued
a statement accusing the Barack Obama administration of being hostile towards
Pyongyang.
Bosworth dismissed the North's claim. "President Obama has stressed on numerous
occasions that the door to dialogue remains open and that we remain committed to
resolving the problems we face through negotiations and dialogue," he said.
He reaffirmed that Washington is willing to hold bilateral talks with Pyongyang
within the framework of the six-party talks.
"We are also prepared to deal with North Korea on a bilateral basis, but in a way
that reinforces the multilateral process," he said.
In a separate press briefing, South Korea's chief nuclear negotiator, Wi
Sung-lac, said the related nations are seeking ways to restart the six-way talks
but no tangible results have been produced so far.
"We hope North Korea will restrain from exacerbating the situation," Wi said
after talks with Bosworth. "The bottom line is that North Korea won't be able to
take provocative steps without impunity. It will pay the price."
He also reiterated that it is premature to talk about an alternative to the
six-way talks. Bosworth agreed that the multilateral negotiations are still the
best option.
"The six-party process is at the heart of the effort to deal with the North
Korean nuclear issue," he said. "It is in (North Korea's) interest to continue
dialogue and negotiation on a multilateral basis."
Bosworth said that he has no plans to visit North Korea during his ongoing trip,
which South Korean officials said is not aimed at producing an immediate
breakthrough but is instead intended to coordinate strategy. He is scheduled to
fly to Japan on Monday.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)