- UNITED NATIONS -- North Korea
has turned plutonium from 8,000 spent nuclear fuel rods into weapons to
serve as a deterrent against a possible nuclear strike by the United States,
a North Korean minister said Monday.
- Warning that the danger of war on the Korean peninsula
"is snowballing," Vice Foreign Minister Choe Su Hon blamed the
United States for intensifying threats to attack the communist nation and
destroying the basis for negotiations to resolve the dispute over Pyongyang's
nuclear program.
-
- Without specifying what kinds or the number of weapons
it has, Choe said North Korea has been left with "no other option
but to possess a nuclear deterrent" because of U.S. policies that
he claimed were designed to "eliminate the DPRK by force while designating
it as part of an `axis of evil' and a target of pre-emptive nuclear strikes."
- DPRK stands for Democratic People's Republic of Korea,
the North's official name.
-
- When asked if the fuel had been turned into actual weapons,
not just weapons-grade material, Choe said: "We declared that we weaponized
this."
-
- In Washington, a State Department official noted that
the administration has long believed North Korea has at least one or two
nuclear weapons. The official, who asked not to be identified, also said
the North Koreans have made conflicting statements about how far along
their weapons development programs have come.
-
- But Choe told the U.N. General Assembly that North Korea
is still ready to dismantle its nuclear program if Washington abandons
its "hostile policy" and is prepared to coexist peacefully.
-
- At the moment, however, he said "the ever intensifying
U.S. hostile policy and the clandestine nuclear-related experiments recently
revealed in South Korea are constituting big stumbling blocks" and
make it impossible for North Korea to participate in the continuation of
six-nation talks on its nuclear program.
-
- A State Department official said North Korea should take
part in six-the party discussions and noted that Secretary of State Colin
Powell has said repeatedly that the United States has no plans to attack
that country.
-
- At a press conference afterward with reporters, the North
Korean foreign minister was asked what was included in the nuclear deterrent.
-
- "We have already made clear that we have already
reprocessed 8,000 wasted fuel rods and transformed them into arms,"
he said.
- North Korea said earlier this year that it had reprocessed
the spent nuclear fuel rods and was increasing its "nuclear deterrent"
but had not provided any details.
-
- South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Lee Soo-hyuck said
in late April that it was estimated that eight nuclear bombs could be made
if all 8,000 spent nuclear fuel rods were reprocessed. Before the reprocessing,
South Korea said it believed the North has enough nuclear material to build
one or two nuclear bombs.
-
- The crisis erupted in 2002 when the United States accused
North Korea of running a secret nuclear weapons program. The United States,
the two Koreas, Japan, China and Russia since have held three rounds of
talks on curbing the North's nuclear ambitions but have produced no breakthroughs.
-
- Choe said the "truth" of South Korea's nuclear
experiments had to be clarified if the talks were to resume.
-
- South Korea has disclosed that it conducted a plutonium-based
nuclear experiment more than 20 years ago and a uranium-enrichment experiment
in 2000. It denied having any weapons ambitions; an investigation by the
International Atomic Energy Agency is under way.
-
- Choe told reporters that North Korea wants an explanation
because Pyongyang believes it is impossible that such experiments took
place "without U.S. technology and U.S. approval."
-
- North Korea and South Korea have been divided since before
the Korean War. Choe reiterated that Pyongyang's goal remains the peaceful
reunification of the countries.
-
- But he accused U.S. "unilateralism and high-handedness"
of trying to sabotage reunification and charged that Washington is deploying
sophisticated war equipment targeting North Korea.
-
- "On the Korean peninsula ... the danger of war is
snowballing owing to the U.S. extreme moves to isolate and stile the DPRK
and threats of preemptive strikes against it," Choe said.
-
- The State Department official noted that Secretary of
State Colin Powell has said repeatedly that the United States has no plans
to attack North Korea.
-
- At the third round of talks in June, the United States
proposed that the North disclose all its nuclear activities, help to dismantle
facilities and allow outside monitoring. Under the plan, some benefits
would be withheld to ensure the North cooperates.
-
- North Korea said it would never scrap its nuclear programs
first and wait to get rewarded later. Instead, it insisted on "reward
for freeze."
-
- Choe told the General Assembly North Korea's proposal
was aimed at building "mutual confidence" and a freeze would
be "the first step toward eventual dismantlement of our nuclear program."
But he said the dispute must be solved step-by-step.
-
- A freeze will be followed by "objective verification,"
he said, telling reporters that the way to do this would be discussed later.
- Choe indicated there was a chance for revival of the
talks.
-
- "If the United States has the will to co-exist peacefully
with the DPRK by abandoning its hostile policy on the DPRK, the nuclear
issue will be resolved properly," he said.
-
- Copyright © 2004, The Associated Press
|
