Korea: Pyongyang inching its way towards nuclear disarmament talks, S Korea official says

Seoul – South Korea’s chief negotiator Lim Sung-nam is convinced that humanitarian aid, the fear of regime change and the possibility of ending international sanctions could persuade North Korea’s news dictator to change course and accept nuclear disarmament talks. “The prospects of the normalization of the relationship between Pyongyang and the international community, and eventually a lifting of sanctions, all those benefits will be a strong incentive for the new leadership,” he said.

The six-nation talks involve the two Koreas, China, Russia, Japan and the United States. They began in 2000 with the goal of eliminating dangerous nuclear weapons from the Korean Peninsula.

However, despite international protests and threats, Pyongyang has maintained its nuclear programme and begun testing nuclear weapons in 2008.

Talks were put on hold and sanctions imposed on North Korea, which have brought it close to brink of disaster.

Kim Jong-il’s death has not changed North Korea’s domestic situation however. “Our reading is that Pyongyang is quite stable,” Lim said. The transition appears to be “going pretty smoothly”.

North Korea’s main problem is economic, chiefly food. After years of failed policies, half of the population has fallen below the poverty line.

Increasingly infrequent shipments of foreign aid from China and South Korean Christian groups are all that stands between hunger and famine.