(EDITORIAL from the Korea Herald on July 31)

Direct talks with N.K.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed his support for bilateral talks
between the United States and North Korea, possibly providing much needed relief
in the stalled six-way talks aimed at the communist state's denuclearization.

During a press conference in New York, Ban expressed his concern that all doors
for dialogue have been shut by the North Koreans and said that while the
six-party talks could still provide a good solution through dialogue, "if
necessary, then there should be some other forms of dialogue."
Ban went further to say that he is encouraged by the willingness of North Koreans
to engage in direct dialogue with the United States and that he supports and
welcomes it. On Monday the North Korea's Foreign Ministry said there was "a
specific and reserved form of dialogue that can address the current situation."
That dialogue has been interpreted as meaning bilateral talks between Pyongyang
and Washington.
Pyongyang declared that it was quitting the six-party talks after the United
Nations censured it for a long-range missile test in April. However, it has
repeatedly indicated that it wants one-on-one negotiations with the United
States, Monday's statement being the latest explicit statement. The previous day,
Pyongyang's envoy to the United Nations, Sin Son-ho, said that North Korea was
not opposed to negotiations with the United States, but would no longer
participate in the multilateral forum.
Washington, however, has repeatedly rebuffed Pyongyang's calls for direct talks.
On Monday, a State Department spokesperson said, "Our long-standing policy is
that we are open to a bilateral dialogue, but only in the context of the
six-party talks." Earlier, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that the
multilateral framework was the appropriate way to engage with North Korea and
that North Korea had no option but to return to the six-party talks.
The call for North Korea to return to the six-party talks was reiterated again on
Tuesday in a joint statement issued following the two-day Strategic Economic
Dialogue between China and the United States. The statement said the two
countries had "affirmed the importance of the six-party talks."
Ban's support for direct talks between North Korea and the United States comes at
a time when international sanctions against the communist state are beginning to
kick in. Even Pyongyang's traditional ally China is participating in the U.N.-led
sanctions. Indeed, it appears that North Korea has no more friends left, as
Clinton has said.
Ban, a former South Korean foreign minister, is familiar with North Korean
negotiating strategies. One of the salient features of North Korean tactics is
that once a position has been declared, there is no easy retraction of that
stated position.
Having repeatedly declared that it has abandoned the six-party talks, there is
very slim possibility that Pyongyang will return to the multilateral forum
anytime soon. By giving his support for Pyongyang's bilateral talks proposal, Ban
is providing an opportunity for Washington to consent to direct talks with North
Korea without appearing to give in to North Korean demands.
Any form of engagement is preferable to none in finding peaceful ways to resolve
a conflict. Ban has offered to travel to Pyongyang to try to defuse the tension
on the Korean Peninsula. Perhaps Ban can act as an intermediary, bringing
Pyongyang and Washington to the negotiating table.
(END)