LEAD) Palin expresses security concerns over N. Korea

(ATTN: ADDS Palin's remarks on Russia at bottom)
By Hwang Doo-hyong
WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- U.S. Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin Friday expressed concern over North Korea, but did not go into specifics.

Appearing on a Fox News television program, the Alaska governor said, "North Korea under the leadership of Kim Jong-il -- certainly there's a lot of concern there."
It is the first time that Palin has talked about North Korea since she was picked
as the surprise running mate for Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona) earlier this month.
Critics have said the 44-year-old governor lacks experience in foreign policy and
have questioned her qualifications to become the commander in chief should McCain
become incapacitated.
The six-party talks on ending North Korea's nuclear programs hit a snag in recent
months as North Korea threatened to restart its disabled nuclear reactor, citing
Washington's refusal to lift it from a U.S. terrorism blacklist.
The U.S. wants the North to present a verification protocol on its nuclear
programs before delisting the communist state, while Pyongyang has denounced
Washington for demanding unfettered access to its nuclear and other facilities.

North Korea earlier in the day said it has begun rebuilding its only operating
nuclear reactor, which had been disabled under a multilateral deal in exchange
for energy aid and other political benefits.
The North's Foreign Ministry said it has "suspended the disablement of its
nuclear facilities, and work has been underway to restore its nuclear facilities
in Yongbyon to their original state since some time ago."
Palin emerged as a game changer since her nomination in early September, helping
boost McCain's support ratings in various polls despite criticism of her
inexperience. However, recent financial turmoil caused by falling housing prices
has undermined her popularity to some extent.
Her popularity comes mainly from her fresh image as a crusader against oil
industry-linked corruption in the Alaska state government, and as a hockey mom
who successfully raised five children while serving the state.
Rebutting criticism that she is inexperienced in foreign affairs, she has pointed
out that she is the governor of Alaska, which neighbors Russia, a possible major
security threat to the U.S.
On the Fox program, she also said, "We have got to keep our eye on some of the
ongoing activities in Russia also."
Palin dismissed the possibility of a U.S. war on the side of Georgia against
Russia as a trigger to reviving the Cold War, saying, "We do not want to start a
war with Russia. No Cold War. That's got to be off the table."
Her latest statement was a reversal of the position that she stated last week in
an interview with ABC, in which she said would not preclude a war with Russia to
defend Georgia, a member of the U.S.-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
On other security concerns, Palin said that "any country that's going to house
violent Islamic terrorists" is a security threat, adding, "We have to keep our
eye, of course, on Iran."
She will face Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Biden, a seasoned foreign
policy expert serving on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in a television
debate in early October.
hdh@yna.co.kr
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