Seoul(AsiaNews) – The “primary goal” of upcoming six-party talks on nuclear disarmament is to “reach a quick, effective and pacific agreement on the basis of the 19 September joint statement”.
To attain this goal,South Koreais prepared to “exploit its role as privileged interlocutor withPyongyangandWashington.”
This was declared bySouth Korea's foreign minister, Song Min-soon, when he addressed his first official news conference since being appointed: he succeeds Ban Ki-Moon, who was elected as Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Song said: "It is important for all parties to understand that the best objective to pursue is the terms of the accord of September 1998 that prevented a real arms crisis withJapan. It is surely in the best interest ofNorth Koreatoo.”
Other countries concerned –United States,China,Russia, andJapan– “will be able to take measures they deem necessary.”
Song, former chief nuclear negotiator, continued to say that he could not foresee how usefulor effective the meeting slated for 19 December inBeijing would be. "Disarmament requires a long process, and it is difficult to say how much could be achieved during a few days of negotiations," he said.
Anyhow, given its position as privileged interlocutor,South Korea“will seek to play a constructive role to improve communication with the north, making use of its friendship withWashington”.
