Nuclear impasse to be discussed at inter-Korean talks
(AP)
Updated: 2005-12-13 10:26

South Korea and North Korea are meeting in their highest-level regular dialogue amid a new sense of urgency on the crisis over North Korea's nuclear weapons programs after it threatened to boycott six-nation talks aiming to convince it to disarm.

South Korea is expected to make a strong effort to bring the North back to the international nuclear dialogue during the inter-Korean talks starting Tuesday evening on the southern resort island of Jeju.

The South Korean delegation to the Cabinet-level talks _ the 17th such meeting _ will be headed by Unification Minister Chung Dong-young, while Kwon Ho Ung, a senior Cabinet counselor, will head the Northern delegation. The two sides will share an official dinner Tuesday evening after the North Koreans' arrival, with formal talks starting Wednesday.

Tension has grown since the latest spat between North Korea and the United States over U.S. sanctions imposed against North Korea for alleged illegal activities, including money-laundering and counterfeiting _ allegations the North calls "sheer lies."

North Korea said last week it won't return to the nuclear talks until Washington lifts the sanctions, but the United States insists the issue is a matter of law unrelated to the nuclear talks.

The latest and fifth round of talks took a recess in Beijing last month without progress on a breakthrough September agreement, where the North agreed to give up its nuclear programs in exchange for aid and security guarantees.

South Korea had sought an informal meeting this month at Jeju of the countries involved in the arms talks _ China, Japan, Russia, the United States and the two Koreas. But South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon, attending an Asian summit in Malaysia, said Monday it would be "difficult" to hold such a session, noting the growing tension between Washington and Pyongyang.

"This is an issue of commitment to implementing the joint statement, but there is still mistrust between North Korea and the United States," said Ko Yu-hwan, professor of North Korean studies at South Korea's Dongguk University.

"South Korea will urge North Korea's efforts to advance the six-party talks during the ministerial talks, but it is hard to expect any breakthrough," said Ko, noting the North's tendency to treat the inter-Korean dialogue as separate from the nuclear talks.

The latest nuclear crisis erupted in late 2002 when U.S. officials said the North violated an earlier agreement by admitting to a secret uranium-enrichment program. The North has since denied the U.S. allegation, but in February announced it has built plutonium-based nuclear weapons.

Other topics on the agenda at the inter-Korean talks include the issue of South Korean abuctees and prisoners of war still held in North Korea, along with establishing a permanent peace agreement on the peninsula.

The two Koreas are still technically at war following the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended in a cease-fire, not a peace treaty, although exchanges between the two neighbors have increased since a historic summit of their leaders in 2000.