http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=worldNews <http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2006- 08-08T150447Z_01_SEO6257_RTRUKOC_0_US-KOREA-NORTH-REPORT.xml> &storyID=2006-08-08T150447Z_01_SEO6257_RTRUKOC_0_US-KOREA-NORTH-REPORT.xml US, North Korea may be on collision course: group
By Jon Herskovitz SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea needs to be given a face-saving way of coming back to talks on its nuclear weapons program or it might opt to increase tension through missile or nuclear tests, a report released on Wednesday said. The influential International Crisis Group (ICG) said in a report on the stalled six-way nuclear talks and the North's multiple missile launches in July that one way to reduce tensions might be for the United States to ease some of the financial restrictions it placed on the communist state. "Unless negotiations resume soon with both sides showing more flexibility, Washington and Pyongyang could find themselves on a collision course with Seoul caught in the middle," it said. Talks among the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States have been stalled since last November, following a U.S. crackdown on firms it suspects of aiding the North in illicit activities such as counterfeiting. North Korea has denied any wrongdoing and said it would be unthinkable for it to return to the discussions while Washington was trying to topple its leaders through financial pressure. "If Pyongyang is not given a face-saving way of backing down, it could escalate the confrontation by testing another missile or even conducting a nuclear test, which would certainly lead to even harsher condemnation and more severe sanctions," the ICG report said. Defying international warnings, North Korea test-fired seven missiles on July 5. The U.N. Security Council later passed a resolution chastising Pyongyang for the launch. The ICG recommended that the United States free up North Korean assets frozen in a Macau bank that can be linked to legitimate business activities. In September, the U.S. Treasury Department branded Banco Delta Asia -- a bank in Macau that did business with North Korean firms -- a "willing pawn" in Pyongyang's illicit activities. The bank denied the allegation, but said in February it had stopped dealing with North Korea. U.S. officials have said the bank froze about $24 million in assets. Some of the accounts belonged to North Korea's top leaders, who have since found it difficult to bank in other places because of the U.S. crackdown. Washington has vowed to maintain the restrictions. The report also recommended that the U.S. government appoint a special envoy solely dedicated to the six-party talks who can visit Pyongyang for informal bilateral discussions. It called on Washington to avoid veiled threats and name calling. The chief U.S. envoy for the talks is an assistant secretary of state. Washington has said it can talk directly with Pyongyang within the six-party process. The report recommended that South Korea link its expansion of economic cooperation with the North to the resumption of the six-party talks and for Seoul to refrain from making any more critical comments about how the United States and Japan responded to the missile launch. "A united front is needed more than ever. North Korea must no longer be allowed to exploit differences between the parties," it said. The independent International Crisis Group -- set up in 1995 to try to prevent, contain and resolve conflicts -- is funded by foundations, governments and individual donations. It has high-level access to government policy makers. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
