No Aid to N. Korea Without Progress Over Abduction Issue: Officials

Tokyo, Feb. 1 (Jiji Press)–At the upcoming six-way talks, Japan will refuse to provide any energy or other economic assistance to North Korea unless progress is seen to be made over the abduction issue, Japanese officials said Thursday.

At the meeting, set to be held in Beijing on Feb. 8, Japan will side with the United States and South Korea and urge North Korea to close its nuclear facilities in Yongbyong, accept inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency and shut down nuclear test sites.

The last six-party meeting ended on Dec. 22 without substantive talks on the nuclear issue. This was because North Korea persisted with its demand that the United States terminate financial sanctions against it.

After recent talks between North Korea and the United States revealed that Pyongyang may be willing to compromise, some are anticipating progress in the upcoming talks intended to solve the North Korean nuclear issue.

Some participants to the six-way talks have floated the idea of putting possible agreements, if any, in writing. If such documents are to be compiled, economic assistance measures for North Korea could be presented as rewards for initial steps toward nuclear disarmament that North Korea pledges to take.

But Japan will maintain its position of refusing normalization of diplomatic ties with the country if no progress is made in the dispute over North Korea’s kidnapping of Japanese citizens, the Japanese officials said.

Even if any progress is made on the nuclear issue, Japan will not provide economic assistance to the communist country or terminate sanctions it has imposed, such as a ban on the Mangyongbong-92 North Korean passenger-cargo ferry entering Japanese ports, the officials said.

If the two countries agree to discuss bilateral issues at a working group level, as proposed by China, Japan will take up the abduction issue and explore ways to resolve it, the officials said.

But Japan may have to consider food or other humanitarian aid if other participants to the Beijing meeting agree to provide such aid, a senior Foreign Ministry official said.

The Beijing talks will bring together representatives of China, Japan, North and South Korea, Russia and the United States.END

(c) 2007 Jiji Press English News Service. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.