U.S. cautious about starting bilateral talks with N. Korea: official

By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, Sept. 28 (Yonhap) -- The United States is likely to take a few more weeks
to decide the time, venue, and other details of anticipated bilateral talks with
North Korea, a top South Korean official said Monday after meetings with senior
American officials handling the North Korea issue last week in Washington.

U.S. officials are cautious about "putting the first button in the right hole,"
since dealings on the North's nuclear program may set the precedent for
negotiations with Iran, he told reporters on the customary condition of
anonymity.
"The overwhelming opinion in the U.S. is to have dialogue with North Korea, but
to do so without leaving room for critics to find fault with," the official said.
The Obama administration is not in a position to rush to talks with North Korea,
given domestic and diplomatic circumstances, he added.
Washington is expected to soon begin engaging the North, likely by sending a
high-level envoy to Pyongyang. In a meeting with Chinese State Councilor Dai
Bingguo in Pyongyang, earlier this month, the North's leader Kim Jong-il said his
regime is prepared for both "bilateral and multilateral talks," according to
Xinhua news agency.
The North's state media on Monday formally confirmed that Chinese Premier Wen
Jiabao will make a "goodwill visit" to Pyongyang Oct. 4-6, a closely watched trip
that precedes U.S. engagement and concerted efforts to bring North Korea back to
denuclearization talks.
The North's number two leader Kim Yong-nam said in July that the North's six-way
talks with the U.S., South Korea, China, Russia, and Japan have come to a
permanent end, and it was unclear what Kim Jong-il meant by "multilateral" talks.
The South Korean official refused to guess the North's intention. "We should not
jump to an conclusion, whether it is positive or negative," he said.
He also said South Korea and the U.S. will continue consultations on President
Lee Myung-bak's so-called "grand bargain" proposal when Deputy Secretary of State
James Steinberg makes a two-day visit here from Tuesday as part of his regional
tour.
In a speech in New York last week, Lee proposed a one-shot deal with the North
that would give the communist regime security guarantees, economic assistance and
international diplomatic recognition if it gives up "key elements" of its nuclear
program.
While U.S. officials were guarded about Lee's proposal, South Korean nuclear
negotiators said the concept is similar to that of Washington's plan to provide
North Korea with a comprehensive package of incentives for its irreversible
denuclearization.
The official stressed that the envisioned grand bargain is not an issue of
content but process, saying almost all of the North's obligations and incentives
are already mentioned in previous six-way agreements -- the Sept. 19, 2005
agreement and ensuing deals.
"What we seek is a complete agreement that can be immediately implemented,
different from step-by-step approach in which reaching a deal is one thing and
its implementation is another," he said.
lcd@yna.co.kr
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