By Reuben Staines
Staff Reporter



Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Ban Ki-moon, left, shakes hands with Christopher Hill, U.S. assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, at the ministry, Monday. Yonhap


Washington’s top nuclear negotiator was Monday eyeing resumed inter-Korean talks in Kaesong for a possible breakthrough in the deepening standoff over North Korea’s nuclear weapons programs.
Christopher Hill, U.S. assistant secretary of state, said he was looking forward to hearing the results of the inter-Korean meeting and hoped it would yield progress on the nuclear issue.

``I hope especially that North Korea can be convinced to return to the six-party talks,’’ he told reporters before a series of consultations with officials in Seoul. ``Of course, if it can help the six-party process it will be very good.’’

However, Hill was wary of placing too much weight on the North’s decision to reopen government-to-government contacts with the South. ``I’m tired of looking at signals and reading tea leaves,’’ he said. ``I will just be pleased when we have a date to start (the six-party talks.)’’

The former ambassador to Seoul, who arrived in South Korea on Friday, met with Song Min-soon, Seoul’s chief negotiator on the nuclear issue, Ban Ki-moon, minister of foreign affairs and trade, and Unification Minister Chung Dong-young.

His visit comes amid rising tensions in the nuclear dispute.

North Korea last week announced it has completed unloading 8,000 spent fuel rods from its Yongbyon nuclear reactor, a move experts say will allow it to extract weapons-grade plutonium for two or three bombs. U.S. officials expressed concern and hinted at punitive measures if the North does not resume the multilateral nuclear talks soon.

During his meeting with Hill, Ban expressed hope that the meeting between the vice ministers of the two Koreas would ``create a favorable atmosphere’’ for resolving the nuclear crisis.

Chung said resuming inter-Korean dialogue will give the South an avenue to urge the North to return to the bargaining table. ``It is true that Seoul has been limited from playing an active role in the nuclear talks since the inter-Korean dialogue channel has been shut down,’’ the unification minister said while sending off the delegation to the Kaesong talks.

But despite proposing the inter-Korean meeting, Pyongyang has shown few signs of restarting the six-party talks, which it has boycotted for the past 11 months.

In Washington, U.S. National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley warned the North against further nuclear brinkmanship, such as conducting an underground test.

``It would be something where North Korea would be defying not only us, but our partners at the six-party talks, and action would have to be taken,’’ he told CNN.

Earlier this month, the New York Times reported that U.S. intelligence officials have detected signs of preparations for a nuclear test in Kilju, North Hamkyong Province.

``We’ve seen some activity that is consistent with possible preparations for a nuclear test,’’ Hadley said. ``We don’t know for sure. As you know, North Korea is a very hard target.’’

South Korea’s intelligence chief said last week that his agency has found no conclusive evidence of an imminent nuclear test by the North.

rjs@koreatimes.co.kr