THERE WERE encouraging signs yesterday that deadlocked talks to end the nuclear stand-off on the Korean peninsula may resume after China said North Korea was keen to improve ties with Washington and its Asian neighbours.
Premier Wen Jiabao, fresh from a visit to his country’s Communist ally, said the North Koreans indicated willingness to resume multilateral talks on nuclear disarmament and urged the other parties in the debate not to let the opportunity slip away.
“We need to seize the opportunity and make the most of it. If we miss this opportunity, we might later have to do more than we should,” he said.
China is North Korea’s only significant ally and many believe that it is economic aid from China that is propping up the impoverished country, which is run by the Stalinist government led by Kim Jong-il.
China’s influence is highly valued by other nations in the region, many of whom have deep divisions with North Korea.
North Korea has been making overtures to Washington of late, something that irritated the Chinese who have earned much diplomatic kudos, both regionally and internationally, from the way they have led the six-party talks on denuclearisation, which include both Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States.
“The North Korean side showed flexibility. It said it is not opposed to the six-party talks, and it is willing to resolve the relevant issues through bilateral and multilateral talks,” Mr Wen told a news conference.
His remarks are in line with growing optimism that a breakthrough may be imminent on the Korean peninsula.
Tensions have been raised by a series of nuclear weapon tests and missile launches by the North Koreans, but in recent months there have been positive signs, including the release of two US journalists convicted of spying after they wandered across the Chinese border into North Korean territory.
United Nations sanctions imposed after the nuclear tests and rocket launch – which, crucially, were backed by China — do appear to be paying dividends and forcing North Korea to negotiate.
A possible sticking point remains the way the North says it first wants direct talks with the United States before re-entering the multilateral negotiations.
Mr Wen was greeted at the airport by Mr Kim, and the two leaders held 10 hours of talks.
The Chinese prime minister said that his deepest impression after his talks with Mr Kim was that the North wants to improve relations with the United States as well as Japan and South Korea.
While North Korea has long sought a direct dialogue with Washington, US officials have said such talks may be possible if they are part of the six-party negotiations.
On Saturday, Mr Wen, Japanese prime minister Yukio Hatoyama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak met in Beijing for an annual summit.
While they agreed on various issues such as climate change and trade, the nuclear talks were top of the agenda.
Mr Lee said that he welcomed North Korea’s willingness to improve inter-Korean relations.
“I welcome that North Korea is willing to talk about relations with South Korea. I am always open to this,” Mr Lee, who has a reputation of being a hawk on the North, said after the meeting.
Meanwhile in Pyongyang, it was business as usual, and North Korea marked the 64th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers’ Party with calls to unite around Mr Kim.