Obama urged to engage N. Korea economically to complement denuclearization efforts: report

By Hwang Doo-hyong
WASHINGTON, Oct. 22 (Yonhap) -- The Barack Obama administration should engage
North Korea economically on a long-term basis to complement the short-term
efforts for its denuclearization, a report said Thursday.
"Sanctions have been tried for decades, and at times have been useful in moving
Pyongyang back to negotiations," said the report written by a task force
commissioned by the Asia Society. "But their long-term effect has been to harden
the DPRK's resistance to international cooperation and reinforce its isolation
from the liberalizing influence of global economic integration."
DPRK is North Korea's official name, Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
"Sanctions alone will not create a lasting solution to the North Korean
conundrum, and must be complemented by other long-term strategic approaches,"
said the report titled "North Korea Inside Out: The Case for Economic
Engagement."
The proposal comes as the Obama administration is leading international efforts
to sanction North Korea for its nuclear and missile tests earlier this year.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Wednesday said that the U.S. will not
lift sanctions on North Korea nor normalize ties unless Pyongyang takes
irreversible steps toward its denuclearization.
The top U.S. diplomat also said, "Within the framework of the six-party talks, we
are prepared to meet bilaterally with North Korea. But North Korea's return to
the negotiating table is not enough."
In anger over the sanctions, North Korea has boycotted six-party talks on ending
its nuclear ambitions, although its leader Kim Jong-il said earlier this month
that Pyongyang will not return to the talks pending the outcome of bilateral
talks with Washington.
The North's apparent reconciliatory gesture came when Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao
visited Pyongyang for talks with Kim to sign agreements for provision of fresh
aid and construction of a bridge linking the sides over the Aprok River, which is
the natural border between the regional communist allies.
Ri Gun, the North's deputy chief to the six-party talks, will arrive in New York
Friday to attend seminars and possibly meet with U.S. officials to prepare for a
visit to Pyongyang by Stephen Bosworth, the U.S. point man on North Korea policy,
for a breakthrough in bilateral ties.
"The United States needs a long-term strategy aimed at transforming North Korea's
intentions and behavior to complement the short-term focus on the DPRK's nuclear
capabilities," the report said. "A central piece of that strategy is to engage
North Korea in the process of economic integration with the economy."
The report called on the U.S. to pursue academic exchanges, cooperation with
nongovernmental organizations and engagement with the International Monetary Fund
and other international institutions, although "North Korean decision-makers may
rebuff initial proposals for cooperation."
"There are no guarantees that even if they welcome economic engagement they will
be able to win over those who enjoy special protection and status under the
command economy," it said.
Despite the difficulties involved, economic engagement may initiate significant
changes in the North, it said.
"The very process of economic engagement with the U.S. has the potential to
catalyze fundamental changes in North Korean political, economy and foreign
relations, while at the same time allowing the U.S. to learn more about its
internal dynamics and refine its policies accordingly," the report said.
It cited North Korea's economic assets "that can contribute to a new growth path:
an educated labor force, a rich supply of minerals, a long history as an
industrial country, and neighbors like the ROK and China who are eager to do
business."
North Korea has provided more than 40,000 employees to hundreds of South Korean
companies operating in the joint industrial complex in the North's border town of
Kaesong.
South Korean employees said they are satisfied with the quality of North Korean
employees compared with laborers in Southeast Asian nations, although they
complain about political instability affecting the operation of the industrial
park.
China is said to have invested heavily in North Korea during the past decades
despite the on-and-off North Korean nuclear crisis that first began in early
1990s.
Some South Koreans fear the North's growing dependence on China may be burdensome
to a unified Korea.
China has long been reluctant to join in taking punitive actions against North
Korea, although U.S. officials recently expressed satisfaction with the level of
cooperation Beijing has extended in sanctioning Pyongyang in recent months.
Some analysts say China is ready to acquiesce to North Korea's possession of a
nuclear armament. China may prefer the status quo to Korean reunification led by
South Korea helped by the U.S., they say, noting China's strategy does not aim
simply at North Korea, but includes Washington on a long-term basis.
"The United States has taken the economic engagement approach with many other
countries, but never with North Korea," the report said. "Now is the time to
begin developing a new, long-term policy approach that engages North Korea from
the inside out."
hdh@yna.co.kr
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