N. Korea Ready for Six-way Talks

North Korea notified the Roh administration that it would accept multilateral talks consisting of South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia, to resolve the current tension over the Korean Peninsula caused by its nuclear ambition. No date has been set for the meeting, which is likely to take place in Beijing.

"North Korea directly informed our government of its readiness to take part in six-way talks on the issue," said Lee Soo-hyuk, South Korea`s assistant foreign minister. "Our government welcomes the North Korean move."

"I can`t say through what channel North Korea sent the confirmation. The only thing I can say for sure is that the North sent the message directly to us. As far as we know, Pyongyang has already informed the other countries of the talks."

Lee said he did not know when the talks would take place, adding, "Details would be discussed with other countries."

As to the possibility that three-way talks would be held once more prior to the six-way talks, Lee said, "North Korea will go directly to the six-way talks, I believe.”

South Korean Foreign Minister Yoon Young-kwan discussed follow-up measures with U.S. Ambassador Thomas Hubbard, who visited the minister’s residence yesterday afternoon.

A Bush Administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed, "Japan, South Korea and the Untied States will have working-level talks in the near future. At the meeting, details about the six-way talks will be discussed. The meeting could take place as early as this month."

Japan`s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda said Washington told Tokyo overnight that the talks would likely be held in Beijing, but the timing was undecided.

"The United States is considering guaranteeing a non-aggression assurance to the North in the form of a statement equivalent to an international agreement," reported The New York Times, citing a Bush Administration official. But Secretary of State Colin Powell excluded the non-aggression treaty option, added the newspaper.

News of the development came somewhat indirectly from Moscow. There, North Korea`s ambassador to Russia, Pak Ui-chun, reportedly told Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Yuri Fedotov today that North Korea now supports "six-sided talks with the participation of Russia on resolving the current complex situation on the Korean Peninsula."

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