ID :
19820
Wed, 09/17/2008 - 09:18
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/19820
The shortlink copeid
Top S. Korean, U.S. diplomats to hold talks next week
By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, Sept. 16 (Yonhap) -- South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan will have talks with his American counterpart Condoleezza Rice next week in New York on the North Korean nuclear program and other issues of mutual concern, including an expanded internship program for South Korean students, officials here said Tuesday.
Yu also plans to meet with the Chinese and Russian foreign ministers on the
sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly's 63rd session to open next Tuesday, they
said.
"Minister Yu is scheduled to attend the opening ceremony of the session in
the morning on Sept. 23 and an ensuing luncheon hosted by the U.N.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon," ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young said.
"Foreign ministerial talks with the U.S. and other major nations such as
China and Russia will be held later in the day."
Yu and Rice plan to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on a student
exchange program agreed on during a summit between the leaders of the two nations
last month.
The annual exchange, called the Work, English Study and Travel (WEST) program,
will allow as many as 5,000 South Korean university students to study and work in
the U.S. for up to 18 months starting next year.
WEST is an expansion of the Work and Travel Program currently operated by the
U.S., in which international students can enter the U.S. for a maximum of four
months during their vacation and work for U.S. employers. More than 1,700 South
Korean students took part in the program last year alone.
"The U.S. asked for the signing of the MOU on the WEST program during the
U.N. General Assembly period," Moon said.
He decline to reveal details on the MOU and other agenda items, but a senior
ministry official said, requesting anonymity, that the top diplomats will discuss
ways of moving forward the stalled denuclearization process.
North Korea has taken initial steps to restart its main plutonium-producing
reactor in Yongbyon to protest Washington's delay in removing Pyongyang from the
list of state sponsors of terrorism.
Efforts to resolve the nuclear crisis have gained urgency since reports that
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il suffered a stroke and underwent brain surgery
last month. He is recuperating from the latest ailment, according to South Korean
intelligence officials. Media reports of his health have rekindled international
concern over who will gain control of the secretive nation's nuclear arsenal if
Kim is incapacitated or dies.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)
SEOUL, Sept. 16 (Yonhap) -- South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan will have talks with his American counterpart Condoleezza Rice next week in New York on the North Korean nuclear program and other issues of mutual concern, including an expanded internship program for South Korean students, officials here said Tuesday.
Yu also plans to meet with the Chinese and Russian foreign ministers on the
sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly's 63rd session to open next Tuesday, they
said.
"Minister Yu is scheduled to attend the opening ceremony of the session in
the morning on Sept. 23 and an ensuing luncheon hosted by the U.N.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon," ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young said.
"Foreign ministerial talks with the U.S. and other major nations such as
China and Russia will be held later in the day."
Yu and Rice plan to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on a student
exchange program agreed on during a summit between the leaders of the two nations
last month.
The annual exchange, called the Work, English Study and Travel (WEST) program,
will allow as many as 5,000 South Korean university students to study and work in
the U.S. for up to 18 months starting next year.
WEST is an expansion of the Work and Travel Program currently operated by the
U.S., in which international students can enter the U.S. for a maximum of four
months during their vacation and work for U.S. employers. More than 1,700 South
Korean students took part in the program last year alone.
"The U.S. asked for the signing of the MOU on the WEST program during the
U.N. General Assembly period," Moon said.
He decline to reveal details on the MOU and other agenda items, but a senior
ministry official said, requesting anonymity, that the top diplomats will discuss
ways of moving forward the stalled denuclearization process.
North Korea has taken initial steps to restart its main plutonium-producing
reactor in Yongbyon to protest Washington's delay in removing Pyongyang from the
list of state sponsors of terrorism.
Efforts to resolve the nuclear crisis have gained urgency since reports that
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il suffered a stroke and underwent brain surgery
last month. He is recuperating from the latest ailment, according to South Korean
intelligence officials. Media reports of his health have rekindled international
concern over who will gain control of the secretive nation's nuclear arsenal if
Kim is incapacitated or dies.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)
