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Northeast Asia Peace and Security Network DAILY REPORT For Friday, April 17, 1998, from Berkeley, California, USA |
1. ROK-DPRK Talks
The Associated Press ("KOREA TALKS TO CONTINUE AMID DISPUTE OVER
AID, REUNIONS," Beijing, 04/17/98) reported that talks between
the DPRK and the ROK broke off Friday, but the two sides agreed
to meet again Saturday. ROK Deputy Unification Minister Jeong
Se-hyun stated, "We have many things to provide North Korea to
ease their agricultural agonies. We want to gain something from
the North Korean side in return." Chun Kum-chul, Jeong's
counterpart from the DPRK, told reporters separately that he
wanted fertilizer aid treated as a humanitarian issue without
conditions, adding that family reunions could be taken up in
talks by Red Cross officials from the two sides.
2. PRC Missile Proliferation
The Los Angeles Times (Jim Mann, "CHINA REJECTS JOINING MISSILE-
CONTROL GROUP, U.S. OFFICIALS SAY," Washington, 04/17/98)
reported that unnamed senior US administration officials said
that the PRC turned down a proposal by John Holum, director of
the US Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, that it join the
Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) when US President Bill
Clinton visits Beijing in late June. In exchange, the PRC would
have gained greater access to US commercial space technology.
Clinton administration officials reportedly had hoped that an
agreement bringing the PRC into the group could be the
centerpiece of the president's trip. Bates Gill of the Monterey
Institute of International Studies explained the PRC's objections
to the MTCR by saying that PRC officials "consider the [group] a
cartel. It's led by the United States. And membership would
crimp their room for maneuver in dealing with various countries
like Pakistan and Iran." Gary Milhollin of the Wisconsin Project
on Nuclear Arms Control argued, "I think it's a good thing the
Chinese didn't agree to join. If they did, we would have dropped
the barriers to exports to China, when there was no reason to
think China would change its export behavior." However, Gary
Samore, the US National Security Council's leading expert on
weapons proliferation, stated, "Obviously, the United States is
not going to provide assistance to China's missile program."
3. US-Japan Military Cooperation
Reuters ("US PROPOSES MAKING WEAPONS WITH EUROPE, JAPAN,"
Washington, 04/16/98) reported that US Undersecretary of Defense
Jacques Gansler on Thursday called for increased cooperation with
Europe and Japan in the production of new weapons so that the
allied nations can fight wars together more easily. Gansler
stated, "As you think about future wars we are most likely to
have coalition wars." In such coalition wars, Gansler argued,
the allies must have weapons that are compatible with one
another, and they should have common command and control.
4. Japan-Russia Summit Meeting
Reuters (Brian Williams, "JAPAN LAUNCHES MASSIVE SECURITY FOR
YELTSIN VISIT," Kawana, 04/17/98) reported that Japan has
mobilized a 5,000-strong security force for Russian President
Boris Yeltsin's weekend summit with Japanese Prime Minister
Ryutaro Hashimoto. The report said that the biggest worry of
security officials is protests by right-wing groups demanding the
return of the Kuril islands. A police spokesman said right-
wingers had applied for permission to drive 200 loudspeaker vans
on area roads to broadcast their message. He added, "We will do
all we can to prevent any incidents, both accidental and
planned." About 10 people have already been arrested for pasting
leaflets on buildings. Recently, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister
Grigory Karasin lauded improved Russian-Japan relations, saying
in the weekly Moskovsky Novosti newspaper, "The spirit of
Krasnoyarsk fostered a new, overwhelmingly positive atmosphere
that has no precedent in our bilateral relations this century."
However, Toyoshi Eto, the leader of one Japanese nationalist
group, said that Russia was not interested in closer ties with
Japan, only in getting money to develop Siberia. Professor
Shigeki Hakamada, a Russian expert at Aoyama Gakuin University,
warned, "The illusions both Russia and Japan have about each
other could lead to both countries being disappointed and
disillusioned. That could cool the relationship and wreck it by
the time we get to the year 2000."
1. ROK-DPRK Talks
ROK negotiators continued to press the DPRK to agree to the
setting up of a reunion center for divided Korean families
Friday, but without success. During the 90-minute contact
between the chief delegates of the two sides, the ROK proposed
that Red Cross talks be held this month at the truce village of
Panmunjom to exclusively deal with the family reunion issue. But
the DPRK's chief delegate, Chun Kum-chol, insisted that they
discuss the issue at the next round of Red Cross talks on the
ROK's civil-sector food aid to the DPRK, to be held in Beijing
later this year. The two Koreas last month held the fifth round
of inter-Korean Red Cross talks on 50,000 tons of corn aid. The
sixth round of talks will take place after all the promised corn
is delivered and therefore is expected to come sometime in May.
The two sides will meet again Saturday to continue to search for
a compromise, said Jeong Se-hyun, the ROK's chief delegate. "We
will give them till tomorrow to change their stance," he said,
giving the extended talks a weekend deadline. (Korea Times,
"SOUTH INSISTS ON REUNION CENTER; PROPOSES RED CROSS TALKS BE
HELD THIS MONTH AT PANMUNJOM," 04/17/98)
2. DPRK Aid
The UN Development Program will hold a roundtable conference in
Geneva in late May to devise measures to help rebuild the DPRK's
agricultural sector, the ROK Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
Trade said yesterday. The conference was designed as a mechanism
for securing the transparency of aid and raising necessary funds
through consultations among donor countries and international
agencies and the recipients of aid. The UN agency has held
roundtable conferences for 35 developing countries over the past
decade but not for the DPRK yet. (Korea Herald, "UNDP TO HOLD
CONFERENCE FOR NORTH KOREA AGRICULTURE," 04/17/98)
1. ROK-DPRK Relations
The Yomiuri Shimbun ("ROK-DPRK TALKS STILL DEADLOCKED," Beijing,
04/17/98) reported that the ROK-DPRK official talks on fertilizer
aid ended in deadlock on April 16 because neither side would
compromise. Although the ROK wants to prolong the talks and hold
an official meeting on April 27, any substantial talks are
unlikely and at best will probably only set a date for the next
meeting. According to ROK sources, the ROK explicitly demanded
that the DPRK clarify the date for the meeting of the separated
families by saying, "Unless the DPRK sets up the place for the
meeting, we will not provide fertilizer aid to the DPRK." The
DPRK, in response, seemed to show signs of agreeing to deal with
the issue of separated families through the Red Cross, but the
talks saw no agreement because the DPRK refused to clarify the
date for the meeting, said the report. An ROK senior
governmental official said, "The ROK will neither force nor play
up to the DPRK." Jeong Se-hyun, ROK chief delegate, added, "We
will not provide unconditional fertilizer aid by any means,"
according to the report. The report pointed out that given that
both the ROK and the DPRK already agreed to the importance of
their meeting, their dialogue will surely continue. The report
added that considering the closeness of the planting season, the
negotiations will likely resume as early as within this month.
2. Japanese-Russian Relations
The Yomiuri Shimbun ("JAPAN DECIDES TO EXPAND 'VISALESS' EXCHANGE
WITH RUSSIA," 04/17/98) reported that the Japanese government
decided to add economic experts to former islanders as the groups
eligible for so-called visaless travel to the northern
territorial islands. Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto will
officially announce the decision during his meeting with Russian
President Boris Yeltsin on April 18. The report pointed out that
the decision will give a boost to expanding Japan-Russia economic
cooperation, including paving the way for a delegation of
Japanese agricultural experts to visit the islands. The report
added that the "visaless" travelers currently officially include
Japanese former islanders and their relatives, activists who
advocate the return of the territorial islands to Japan, and
press reporters.
3. Northeast Asia Security Dialogue at APEC
The Asahi Shimbun ("PRIME MINISTER PROPOSES JAPAN-US-PRC-RUSSIA
SECURITY DIALOGUE AT APEC," 04/17/98) reported that the proposal
by Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto to hold a Japan-US-
PRC-Russia security dialogue at the Asia-Pacific Economic
Conference slated for November will likely be discussed at the
Japan-Russia summit starting April 18. Hashimoto said to
reporters on April 16, "Such a non-binding dialogue could occur
anywhere. Given that we supported Russia's participation in
APEC, we find no other place rather than APEC where Japan, the
US, the PRC, and Russia can talk with one another in a rather
relaxed way," indicating his positive stance to the security
dialogue. The Japanese government will encourage the PRC to
participate in the dialogue since the PRC has been cautious about
the New Guidelines for Japan-US Defense Cooperation. The report
concluded that such a security dialogue will not only contribute
to peace and security in the Asia-Pacific region but provide a
good opportunity for Russia to emphasize its presence as a member
of the region as well.
4. Japanese Nuclear Policy
The Yomiuri Shimbun ("DIET TO PASS DONEN REFORM LAW NEXT MONTH,"
04/15/98) reported that the Lower House passed the Power Reactor
and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation (PNC/Donen) Reform Law
on April 14 and that the Diet will likely pass the law next
month. PNC has been under review for reform by the ad hoc PNC
Reform Committee, consisting of non-governmental intellectuals
and experts, since the fire and explosion accident at a
reprocessing plant in Rokkashomura in March, 1996. The law will
officially terminate thirty years of PNC's history, and PNC will
be reduced to dealing only with development of high-speed breeder
reactors and high-level radioactive wastes under the name of the
"Nuclear Recycling Development Organization" starting on October
1.
1. ROK-DPRK Talks
China Daily ("KOREAN TALKS BREAK DOWN ON AID DEAL," 04/16/98, A1)
reported that efforts to restart talks between the DPRK and the
ROK failed on April 15, a day after they collapsed over the ROK's
insistence on political concessions in return for aid to the
DPRK. An ROK embassy official in Beijing said that the two sides
had made contact, but had not agreed to restart the first high-
level DPRK-ROK contact in four years.
Wen Hui Daily ("PROSPECTS OF ROK-DPRK TALKS DIFFICULT TO
CALCULATE," 04/16/98) carried a report written by Yang Guoqiang,
a correspondent for the New China Agency, saying that it is
difficult to forecast the prospects of the ROK-DPRK talks because
the two sides did not make concessions on issues with important
differences. According to the article, there are two key
differences between the two Koreas. The first is that the DPRK
gave priority to getting fertilizer aid from the ROK, while the
ROK wanted to link aid with other issues like the reunion of
separated families. The second difference between the two sides
is that the DPRK wanted half a million ton of chemical
fertilizer, but the ROK only agreed to supply 200,000 tons.
Although the two sides did not reach any substantial progress
during the talks which started on April 11, analysts pointed out
that the talks still had a significant and symbolic meaning.
Jie Fang Daily ("ROK-DPRK TALKS HAVE NO RESULTS," Beijing,
04/17/98, A3) reported that the PRC hopes that the DPRK and the
ROK will maintain the momentum of holding talks. PRC Foreign
Ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao said on April 16 that the PRC
hopes that the DPRK and the ROK will patiently consult with each
other and strive to reach progress which will be beneficial to
the improvement and development of relations between the two
sides.
2. Separated Korean Families
People's Daily ("ROK TO AMEND LAWS," Seoul, 04/15/98, A6)
reported that within the next few days the ROK would begin to
discuss the amendment of national security laws which were
criticized by the DPRK. According to the report, the ROK
government was considering allowing ROK citizens to send small
amounts of money to relatives in the DPRK.
3. PRC Food Aid for DPRK
China Daily ("AID TO DPRK," 04/14/98, A2) reported that the PRC
Government has decided to provide free aid of 100,000 tons of
grain and 20,000 tons of chemical fertilizer to the DPRK.
According to People's Daily ("DPRK THANKS CHINA FOR AID,"
Pyongyang, 04/16/98, A6), DPRK Vice Prime Minister and Foreign
Minister Kim Yong-nan asked PRC Ambassador to the DPRK Wan
Yongxiang on April 14 to transmit letters of thanks from the DPRK
Party and Government for the PRC's aid.
4. PRC-US Relations
China Daily ("NATION PREPARING FOR CLINTON'S VISIT," 04/17/98,
A2) reported that both the PRC and the US are actively preparing
for President Bill Clinton's visit to PRC scheduled for late June
and early July. PRC Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao said
at a regular news briefing on April 16 that US Secretary of State
Madeline Albright will visit the PRC on April 29-30 at the
invitation of PRC Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan. During her
visit, Albright will meet Chinese leaders. Tang and Albright
will engage in an in-depth exchange of views on Sino-US
relations, preparations for President Clinton's visit, and
international and regional issues of common concern.
According to China Daily ("NATION LOOKS FORWARD TO CLINTON'S
VISIT," 04/11/98, A1), the PRC attaches great importance to the
upcoming visit by US President Bill Clinton. When meeting with
US under-secretary of state for political affairs Thomas
Pickering, PRC Vice-Premier Qian Qichen cited Clinton's state
visit this June as another major event in Sino-US ties. following
PRC President Jiang's visit to the US last October. Pickering
said that the US also has great expectations for Clinton's PRC
visit. He said the US and the PRC share common interests in many
issues, such as trade and non-proliferation, which are core
issues to be discussed at the summit.
5. Hu Jintao's Visits to Japan and ROK
People's Daily ("HU MEETS WITH JAPANESE AND ROK AMBASSADORS,"
04/15/98, A1) reported that PRC Vice-President Hu Jintao said on
April 14 that he would have in-depth exchanges of views with
government leaders in Japan and the ROK during his upcoming
official goodwill visit to the two countries from April 21 to 30.
He made these remarks in separate meetings with Japanese
Ambassador to the PRC Yoshiyasu Sato and ROK Ambassador to the
PRC Chong Wook-chung. Noting that both Japan and the ROK are
good neighbors of the PRC, Hu said the PRC has good cooperative
relations in various fields with both countries.
6. PRC Military Modernization
China Daily ("PLA LAUNCHES NEW ROUND OF EXERCISES," 04/14/98, A2)
reported that the PRC armed forces have launched a new round of
military exercises to enhance their capability to cope with
modern high-tech wars. According to sources with the People's
Liberation Army (PLA), the training aims to acquaint PLA officers
and soldiers with the means of winning regional wars by employing
high-technology. According to the report, the PLA previously
launched four massive military exercises respectively in the
1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. This comprehensive military
training represents another milestone in the PLA's modernization
drive, the report said.
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