(EDITORIAL from the Korea Times on Dec. 13)

'Action for Action'

What Step Will US Take Against North Korea?

North Korea is again testing the patience of the United States by continuously
refusing to agree on the verification protocol for its declared nuclear
activities. Nuclear envoys of the U.S., China, Russia, Japan and South Korea were
disappointed at the North's failure to allow inspectors to take samples from its
nuclear facilities during a new round of six-party talks in Beijing this week.
The North' refusal is seen as a move to play for time to start a new negotiation
with incoming U.S. President Barack Obama who is to take office on Jan. 20.
The recalcitrant North might believe that it can deal more easily with the Obama
administration than with the conservative government of President George W. Bush.
However, the North must realize that Obama and his policymakers will never play
into the hands of intransigent leaders of the world's last Stalinist country.
Obama is no doubt liberal and open-minded. He once said during his campaign trail
that he is ready to meet with any leaders of friends and foes to solve important
global issues.
It is nonsense for the North to interpret Obama's remarks as his willingness to
make more concessions to the reclusive communist country than Bush did. The
settlement of the nuclear issue is totally dependent on how Pyongyang should
behave. Five members of the six-nation talks have tried to please North Korea to
persuade it into sincerely making good on its denuclearization commitments. They
have promised to provide energy aid, economic assistance, diplomatic incentives
and security guarantees to the dictatorial regime of Kim Jong-il in return for
nuclear disarmament.
But, Pyongyang has repeatedly resorted to its notorious brinkmanship policy to
bring about a deadlock to its denuclearization process. This has only exhausted
the patience of the U.S., South Korea and others. It is really regrettable that
the North has played a dangerous game of nuclear blackmail, frequently
threatening to go back to square one. According to U.S. officials, the North
agreed verbally to the sampling in October when U.S. nuclear envoy Christopher
Hill visited Pyongyang. But Kim Kye-gwan, the North's chief nuclear negotiator,
refuted the agreement in Beijing on Wednesday by saying that his country has a
different understanding on that issue.
Now, the U.S. hints at suspending the supply of promised heavy fuel oil to the
North in response to its continued refusal to budge an inch. ``Obviously, one of
the things people think about is energy assistance," White House spokesperson
Dana Perino said Thursday. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack also said,
``This is an action-for-action negotiations. I don't think you're going to see
much action from other parties until North Korea acts."
North Korea has played an endless game of chicken in a bid to put forward their
irrational demands by using the logic of ``action for action." But, now it is
time for the U.S. and its allies to take a step on an action-for-action basis to
force the nuclear pariah to comply with its denuclearization pledges. For now,
the U.S. is not thinking of putting the North back on the list of
terrorism-sponsoring states. But it will have to devise a powerful instrument of
leverage for denuclarization and nonproliferation.
(END)