(2nd LD) S. Korea, U.S. have many "options" on N. Korea: Steinberg

(ATTN: UPDATES with S. Korean, U.S. nuclear envoy's comments in last 4 paras)
By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, June 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States have a range of
"options" to deal with North Korea, a top-level U.S. government official said
Wednesday, as the communist state threatens provocative steps while on a course
for another hereditary power succession.
"I think we have a common view that we need to take steps to make clear to the
North that the path it's on is the wrong one," Deputy Secretary of State James
Steinberg told reporters after an hour-long meeting with South Korea's Vice
Foreign Minister Kwon Jong-rak.
Steinberg is leading a high-profile U.S. delegation that also includes Treasury
Undersecretary Stuart Levey, in charge of cracking down on terrorism-related
funds, Wallace Gregson, assistant secretary of defense for Asian Pacific affairs,
Jeffrey Bader, senior director for Asian Affairs at the National Security
Council, and Stephen Bosworth, special representative on North Korea policy.
Other members are Joseph DeTrani, in charge of North Korea for the Director of
National Intelligence, and Vice Admiral James Winnefeld of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff.
"It's a delegation that reflects the strong commitment we have to our common
security with the Republic of Korea and to working together on this very
important challenge," Steinberg said.
Kwon agreed that the composition of the team itself sends an important signal to
the recalcitrant communist regime.
"We discussed a range of options," the deputy secretary said in response to
questions over whether the issue of financial sanctions on the North was raised
during the talks.
"We agreed we need to work closely together and deal with any future actions by
North Korea to make clear that now is the time for North Korea -- rather than
continuing to take more dangerous and provocative actions -- to recognize the
better course is to reengage and to get back on the path of negotiations toward
denuclearization," he said.
He added that Washington and its allies are "focused less on specific actions
that can be taken and more on our long-term strategy on how to proceed."
On the issue of the North's reported preparations for another father-to-son
transfer of power, Kwon said, "What we focus on is how we can continue to work
together to make sure, no matter what happens in North Korea, that we have a
common approach, that we have a shared assessment and a common strategy."
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has appointed his third and youngest son,
Jong-un, as his successor, according to South Korean intelligence authorities.
The U.S. group had a luncheon meeting with Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan, who is
scheduled to head to the U.S. later in the day for talks with Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton.
The U.S. officials plan to pay a courtesy call on President Lee Myung-bak and
meet Unification Minister Hyun In-taek on Thursday, a day before flying to
Beijing.
A ranking South Korean official said on condition of anonymity that the
consultations with the U.S. team focused on measures to bring the North back to
the bargaining table and strengthen the Seoul-Washington alliance, rather than
punitive steps against the North.
"We shared the notes on the assessment of the current situation and strategy, as
well as ways to resume the six-way talks (on the North Korean nuclear program)
and South Korea-U.S. alliance," he told Yonhap News Agency.
They also discussed possibility of the top nuclear negotiators meeting without
the North. The North's dialogue partners are South Korea, the U.S., China,
Russia, and Japan.
"If such a five-way meeting is helpful to the progress of the six-way talks, we
support it," the official said. It is unclear, however, whether China, chair of
the multilateral disarmament talks, will agree to the idea.
Bosworth, meanwhile, had separate talks with Seoul's top nuclear envoy, Wi
Sung-lac, to discuss the next step on North Korea.
"I think it's important for the five parties to make sure that we do everything
possible to keep the prospects for the dialogue alive. And I have some confidence
that at some point we're going to see it resume," Bosworth said at the outset of
the meeting. "I don't think it's useful to try to persuade them to do what they
don't want to do. In the end, they will see that having dialogue is in their
interest."
He said the Obama administration has extended an olive branch to North Korea from
the very beginning, adding, "This remains very much the process."
Wi replied, "Given the current difficult times, we have to push for a solution
through the six-party talks.
"We have both cards. On one hand, we have our reactions or actions, and on the
other, we have dialogue and negotiation," he said.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)