Nuclear talks

Representatives of North and South Korea met for crucial talks in Beijing on Wednesday, triggering some hope Pyongyang could be persuaded to resume discussions on ending its nuclear program.

Seoul's main nuclear negotiator Wi Sung-lac and his North Korean counterpart Ri Yong Ho met at the private Chang An Club in central Beijing, a place where high-ranking officials and diplomats often gather.

No details of the talks were immediately available. The meeting was the latest in a series of small steps taken in recent months to revive the on-again, off-again six-nation disarmament talks, which include China, the United States, Japan and Russia, besides the two Koreas.

A South Korean Foreign Ministry official said Wi and Ri, who had last met two months ago in Bali, Indonesia, would resume their talks later Wednesday after a few hours' break. Wi will also meet with Chinese nuclear envoy, Wu Dawei, on Thursday, said an official who spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with government rules.

Tense relations

In April 2009, North Korea walked out of the sputtering nuclear negotiations after the United Nations condemned it for launching a long-range rocket. The North claimed it had only launched a satellite, but didn't convince many. Pyongyang then demonstrated its anger by exploding a nuclear device in May. The nuclear test bolstered critics in South Korea who said their government shouldn't give North Korea a long leash when its strategy seems to be to raise tensions to gain more aid and other concessions to shore up a tricky political succession at home.

But in recent months, North Korea - facing food shortages and a listless economy - has repeatedly expressed its willingness to rejoin the talks. With elections coming up in South Korea, where relations with the North are an emotional issue, President Lee Myung-bak has also indicated a softening of his less compromising policy. According to his office, Lee said in a speech in New York that denuclearization was important to "establish confidence between South and North Korea."

South Korea and US officials have demanded the North halt its uranium-enrichment program, freeze nuclear and missile tests and allow international nuclear inspectors back into the country. North Korea wants the talks to resume immediately without any preconditions. One sticking point has been South Korea's desire for North Korea to demonstrate it is sincere about disarmament and take responsibility for two deadly attacks last year. In 2010, North Korea shelled a South Korean front-line island, killing four people, and allegedly torpedoed a South Korean warship, killing 46.

Author: Marina Joarder (AP, dpa)
Editor : Grahame Lucas