The Bush administration seems positive that the North is producing and circulating forged dollars. Christopher Hill, chief U.S. negotiator for the six-party talks, says the North is clearly forging American dollars, and that the U.S. is prepared to show Pyongyang the evidence. Just recently the U.S. Treasury Department invited counterparts from Korea, China, Hong Kong, and other areas to Washington to explain its position on the financial sanctions. You would think that at this point the Korean government would tell the country how far the situation has progressed and how it sees the matter, and so it is frustrating to have, at a briefing on Tuesday, foreign minister Ban Ki Moon say very little of substance about the subject.
The government's position appears to be that it is a question of illegal activity and thus should be treated as a law enforcement issue and not linked to the six-party talks, and that while the North may be circulating counterfeit dollars it remains unclear whether it is producing them.
Regarding the first point, the government is appealing for restraint regarding the U.S.'s unilateral accusations against the North, since they could affect the six-party talks, and it is trying to facilitate an unofficial meeting between the two sides. The government is right to be doing so. It would be right, also, to ask the U.S. for clear proof of forgery. Having been the first to bring up the issue, the U.S. needs provide the evidence. If there's positive proof, then it literally becomes a law enforcement issue that the international community would have to respond to.
The government needs to stay cool-headed and keep from being swayed by either side's claims right now, and it needs to let the country believe that is what it is doing.
The Hankyoreh, 22 December 2005.
[Translations by Seoul Selection]
