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Northeast Asia Peace and Security Network DAILY REPORT For Tuesday, August 25, 1998, from Berkeley, California, USA |
1. US-DPRK Talks
The Associated Press ("U.S., N. KOREA HOLD NUCLEAR TALKS," New York,
08/24/98) reported that the US and the DPRK held another round of talks
on Monday, and agreed to continue negotiations on Tuesday. The US State
Department refused to give any details about the content of the meetings.
2. DPRK Floods
The Associated Press ("TORRENTIAL RAINS TAKE HEAVY TOLL ON N. KOREANS,"
Seoul, 08/25/98) reported that the DPRK's Korean Central News Agency said
Tuesday that continuing heavy rains and strong winds have taken a "heavy
toll of lives." The agency said that the rains submerged thousands of
hectares of arable land and 1,500 houses and public buildings, and
destroyed 50 roads, 90 bridges, and several railways Sunday and Monday.
3. ROK Unemployment
Dow Jones Newswires ("KOREA EXPECTS NUMBER OF JOBLESS WILL RISE WITH
CORPORATE CHANGES," Seoul, 08/25/98) reported that ROK Labor Minister Lee
Ki-ho said Tuesday that the unemployment rate will reach about 1.75
million by the end of the year, compared with 1.53 million at the end of
June. He attributed the anticipated increase to ongoing corporate
restructuring recommended by the International Monetary Fund to resolve
the country's economic crisis. Lee said the resolution of the month-long
strike at Hyundai Motor Co. Monday would provide more flexibility in the
country's labor market. He added, "On the outside, it seems as though
only a small number of workers will lose their jobs. But, if you include
the number of those who resigned through early retirement programs and
those on unpaid leave, the actual number of layoffs at Hyundai Motor is
about 10,000 workers." Lee said that the final agreement reached by
Hyundai Motor management and labor union was "a well-balanced one that
reflected demands made by both parties."
4. Japanese Weapons Development
The Wall Street Journal ("LOCKHEED REACHES ACCORD WITH MITSUBISHI
ELECTRIC," Tokyo, 08/25/98) reported that Lockheed Martin Corp. and
Japan's Mitsubishi Electric Corp. have reached a basic agreement to
develop and market military equipment to be sold to Japan's Defense
Agency. The two companies will jointly develop radar devices for ships
and planes, as well as electronic missile-control systems. They will
also jointly propose new products to the defense agency.
5. US-Indian Nuclear Talks
Reuters ("U.S. PRESSES INDIA TO JOIN NUCLEAR TREATY," Washington,
08/25/98) reported that US Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott met
special Indian envoy Jaswant Singh on Monday as part of an attempt to
persuade India to join international arms control treaties. Talbott will
follow up his talks by traveling to London Tuesday to meet Pakistani
Foreign Secretary Shamshad Ahmad. A US State Department spokesman said,
"The goal of the talks with both countries is to explore how the U.S. and
the international community can work with India and Pakistan to bring
them back into the international nonproliferation consensus, reduce
tensions and address their security concerns." Other unnamed US
officials said that the outcome of the talks could decide whether US
President Bill Clinton goes ahead with a proposed visit to the two
countries in November. The Indian embassy in Washington described the
talks as "serious and constructive." Singh, in an article published in
the latest edition of the US journal Foreign Affairs, repeated India's
criticisms of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, but said India was
willing to accept a "de jure formalization" of its nuclear test
moratorium. Meanwhile, Kushabhau Thakre, president of the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP), stated, "We will not come under any pressure and sign
a treaty that is against the interests of our country."
6. US-Russian Summit
Reuters ("YELTSIN, CLINTON DISCUSS SUMMIT BY TELEPHONE," Moscow,
08/25/98) reported that Russian President Boris Yeltsin and US President
Bill Clinton on Tuesday discussed by telephone the agenda of their
planned September 1-2 summit meeting in Moscow. A Russian spokeswoman
said the conversation lasted half an hour and covered bilateral and
international issues, adding that the two leaders had expressed optimism
about the future of US-Russian relations.
1. ROK-DPRK Relations
The DPRK has asked the ROK to take the initiative in improving inter-
Korean relations by showing a "gesture of reconciliation," an ROK
official said Monday. The official said that the DPRK request was
conveyed by Chon Gum-chol, vice chairman of the Asian-Pacific Peace
Committee, when he met with Han Wan-sang, a former ROK deputy prime
minister for unification, in Beijing last Friday. Chon asked Han to
convey the message to ROK President Kim Dae-jung, said the official, who
declined to elaborate on what the DPRK meant by a "gesture of
reconciliation." Instead, the official said that Chon expressed regrets
about the breakdown of talks which were held in Beijing in April this
year on proposed ROK fertilizer aid to the DPRK. Chon asked if ROK
President Kim's "sunshine policy" of engagement and the principle of
separating business from politics are the same as the previous
government's policy of absorbing the DPRK for unification. Han told Chon
that President Kim is earnest in his promotion of inter-Korean
reconciliation and cooperation. (Korea Herald, "NORTH KOREA SEEKS SIGN
OF RECONCILIATION FROM SOUTH," 08/25/98)
DPRK leader Kim Jong-il has broken his silence and accused ROK President
Kim Dae-jung of having put inter-Korean relations into a worse state than
in the past. "Since the inauguration of a new government in the South,
it is not reconciliation but confrontation that has intensified, and it
is not peace but the danger of a war that has deepened in North-South
relations," the DPRK's Radio Pyongyang quoted Kim Jong-il as saying
Saturday. However, ROK officials and experts on inter-Korean relations
place little weight on the DPRK leader's first public mention of the ROK
leader. Kim Jong-il is displaying a hardline stance on the ROK partly to
solidify internal coherence in his country ahead of his planned ascension
to state president early next month, they said. ROK officials said Kim's
accusation is not a surprise given the DPRK's two-faced policy in
handling inter-Korean relations, where it pursues economic profits from
the ROK while threatening it militarily or politically. (Korea Herald,
"KIM JONG-IL BASHES SEOUL'S NORTH KOREA POLICY, BUT CENSURE OF KIM DAE-
JUNG'S RECONCILIATION EFFORTS UNLIKELY TO AFFECT RELATIONS," 08/24/98)
2. ROK Financial Crisis
The ROK ruling coalition is pushing for a parliamentary hearing in
October to investigate the alleged economic policy failures under former
ROK President Kim Young-sam, a top ruling party official said Thursday.
"October would be good for the hearings because the National Assembly
will have fewer agenda items in that month than other months during the
September-December regular session," Representative Cho Se-hyung, acting
president of the National Congress for New Politics (NCNP), said. ROK
Prime Minister Kim Jong-pil also reiterated the ruling coalition's
commitment to the parliamentary hearings. (Korea Herald, "NCNP PUSHES
FOR HEARING IN OCTOBER, EX-PRESIDENT KIM YOUNG SAM MAY HAVE TO BE
TESTIFIED [sic] ON ECONOMIC POLICY FAILURES," 08/21/98)
3. ROK-Japan Fishing Talks
The ROK and Japan have made "considerable" progress in major fishing
issues, although they still need to go through a tough bargaining process
for a couple of months to come, ROK officials said Thursday. "We have
deepened understanding on each other's positions, especially regarding
the protection of marine resources and the guaranteeing of Korea's
traditional fishing rights in waters near Japan," an ROK Foreign Affairs-
Trade Ministry official said right after the 4th round of three-day
fishing talks in Seoul. The two countries are also seeking how to
accommodate each other's positions on such issues as the eastern limit
line for the ROK's fishing activities and the width of the exclusive
fishing zones in the two countries' coastal areas, he said. (Korea
Times, "KOREA, Japan MAKE CONSIDERABLE PROGRESS IN FISHING TALKS,"
8/21/98)
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