China rebuffs U.S. 10-party talks idea
Washington and Beijing are showing clearly different positions over applying sanctions against Pyongyang. The Australian government recently decided to impose financial sanctions against North Korea per U.N. Security Council Resolution 1695, signed in the weeks after the North tested seven missiles on July 5. The U.S. welcomed Australia's decision, saying that the move would contribute to preventing the financial system from being used by people attempting to foster proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) or missiles. In contrast, Kong Quan, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, said at a regular briefing, "All the concerned nations should integrate discussions to resume the six-party talks as soon as possible. An attempt to impose sanctions will complicate the situation - they should be stopped." Asked if China will take part in another set of 10-party talks as suggested by the U.S., Kong replied, "Beijing has no plan to participate in such a meeting."The 10-party talks originated as an informal gathering to discuss the North Korea nuclear issue at the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum held in Kuala Lumpur in late July. South Korea, the U.S., China, Russia, Japan, Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Indonesia, and New Zealand participated. Sean McCormack, spokesman for the U.S. State Department, said in a statement that the United States strongly urges other nations to take measures similar to Australia's in order to enforce the U.N. Security Council resolution. Washington is considering whether or not to endorse additional measures as necessary for countries to 'fully abide' by the resolution. In connection with China's unwillingness to join the 10-party talks, Vice Foreign Minister Lee Kyu-hyung said on September 20, "To participate or not depends on each nation's decision. [South Korea] will join the meeting, and I want to stress that the U.S. is making sure that the 10-nation meeting doesn't replace the six-party talks." According to Lee, a related multilateral meeting will be held in New York this week. Chun Young-woo, Korea's top delegate to the six-party process, and his U.S. counterpart Christopher Hill held the first round of negotiations over "common comprehensive approaches" to the North Korea nuclear issue in New York on September 20. Before leaving the U.S., Chun said, "A framework [of comprehensive approaches] has already been established," saying that a roadmap and plan of action were the next necessary steps.
