North Korea Has Raised Ante Says Blix

Former International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Hans Blix (photo) said, “North Korea has steadily increased its capabilities to produce nuclear weapons since the first nuclear crisis in 1994,” and pointed out that the nuclear standoff this time around is incomparably more urgent than the first nuclear crisis.

In an interview with Dong-A Ilbo yesterday, prior to his visit to Korea, former Director General Blix noted, “We can say that by taking the gamble of conducting a nuclear test last month, the North raised the stakes in order to gain more in negotiations.”

Blix visited North Korea many times as a director general of the IAEA and as an executive chairman of the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) from 1981 to 1997 and 2000 to 2003, respectively.

Blix will give a lecture tomorrow on the subject of “armament reduction and nuclear non-proliferation in the 21st Inchon Memorial lecture co-sponsored by Dong-A Ilbo, Korea University and the Inchon Memorial Foundation.

mickey@donga.com