Secretary General-elect of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon takes the oath of office in the General Assembly Hall, Thursday, Dec. 14, 2006, at the United Nations headquarters. Ban will not officially start his new job until Jan. 1, when he will become the eighth secretary-general of the 192-nation world body. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)



US Likely to Guarantee North Korean Security in Document

A domestic media outlet reported that the United States proposed that it could guarantee North Korean national security in an official diplomatic document if the North accepts Washington’s conditions, saying that the proposal was unveiled during last month’s preliminary talks between Washington and Pyongyang.

According to a source, the proposal asks the North for nuclear disarmament in advance. The North showed its interest in the proposal, but it did not reply directly to its counterpart, US envoy Christopher Hill, saying that the North needs to review the proposal with its leader.

At a briefing in Washington, Hill said, “We will deal with the joint statement agreed upon with the North on September 11 last year, but negotiating the issues with the North is very difficult, so I cannot predict it will be fruitful.” Domestic political analysts say that it is important to agree on the steps in the early stage of implementing the September 19th joint statement.

Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Song Min Soon held his first official news briefing today. He said, “It's important for all parties to agree on how to carry out the nuclear dismantlement process. If Pyongyang visibly and tangibly enters the nuclear dismantlement process, then corresponding measures can be flexibly pursued. But in the current stage, I cannot tell you how, what, and when.”
/ 입력시간: 2006. 12.15. 08:52