DATE=8/9/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=KOREA TALKS (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-252625
BYLINE=GORDON MARTIN
DATELINE=GENEVA
INTERNET=YES
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:


INTRO:  Four party talks, involving United States, 
China, and North and South Korea, began in December, 
1997 to try replace the temporary armistice that ended 
the Korean war of 1950 to 1953 by a permanent peace.  
The four countries have just held the sixth round in 
the series.  Gordon Martin reports.

TEXT:  The talks opened last Thursday against the 
unpromising background of North Korean threats to test 
fire another missile to follow up the test a year ago 
which sent a North Korean missile into Japanese air 
space.  

There was no expectation of progress or break through 
and the final joint statement read by the Chinese 
chairman of the round, ambassador Qian Yong Nian, was 
indeed unable to record any significant movement.  
Much of the round was taken up by meetings of two sub-
committees created to look at tension reduction on the 
Korean peninsula and the establishment of a peace 
regime there.  But the final statement describing the 
talks as useful and productive gave no details of 
there substance.

            /// Qian Act-Translator ///

      In the sub-committees meeting, to discuss 
      tension reduction, the parties raised some new 
      proposals or reiterated previous ones.  Each 
      party recognized from the current situation, on 
      the Korean peninsula, the importance and urgency 
      of tension reduction there.  The parties 
      expressed hope to expedite the purpose of talks.  
      In the sub-committee meeting to discuss 
      specifics of the peace regime, the  parties 
      tabled their respective ideas.  Such in 
      expiration, help deepen the neutral 
      understanding of each other's policies on 
      establishment of a peace regime.

            /// End Act ///

Ambassador Qian was at pains to deny any impression 
that this latest round had achieved nothing.  It had 
in fact produced pure progress,he said since it had 
laid the groundwork for more detailed talks later.  

The Chinese delegation had tabled, he said, what he 
described as draft plan for a peace regime on the 
divided peninsula.  And he said, the fact that the 
four parties had proved ready to meet and to discuss 
the issues calmly was, in itself, a move towards 
tension reduction.  

At the same time, he acknowledged that significant 
differences remained, like North Korea's continued 
demand for the withdrawal of 37 thousand U-S troops 
from South Korea.  Ask about the failure to set a 
precise date for the next round of talks, Ambassador 
Qian said the decision on the date will be delayed 
until later.

A senior United States official saw it as a good sign 
that Monday's concluding session had lasted so long. 
He said that they've now gone beyond procedural 
questions and were moving into some of the harder 
areas.  

The U.S. official confirmed that it was North Korea 
which had blocked agreement on a date for new round of 
talks, but he voices confidence that a date would be 
fixed.  "It's my expectation that come December we all 
be here doing this again," he said.  And he 
categorically dismissed any suggestion that the four 
party talks had been suspended.  

The official played down the relevance of the 
threatened North Korean missile test to the four party 
talks which he stressed were designed to deal with the 
replacement of the armistice.  He expected further 
talks on the missile question to be conducted 
bilaterally between North Korea and the United States.  
(Signed)

NEB/GM/TVM-T/PT



09-Aug-1999 22:24 PM LOC (10-Aug-1999 0224 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America
.