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UN Undersecretary for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman arrives at the Beijing Capital Airport following a five-day trip to North Korea. Feltman met with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho and Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong-guk, but was unable to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. (AP/Yonhap News)
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No diplomatic breakthroughs were reported following Jeffrey Feltman’s five day visit
UN Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman arrived in Beijing on Dec. 9 following a five-day visit to North Korea. In a press release, the UN announced that Feltman and senior North Korean officials “agreed that the current situation [on the Korean Peninsula] was the most tense and dangerous peace and security issue in the world today.” North Korean Central News Agency reported the same day that Feltman and the officials had “held talks on topics of mutual interest, including the cooperative relationship between [North Korea] and the UN, cooperation with UN organizations, and the political situation on the [Korean] Peninsula.” North Korea reported that it had reached an agreement with the UN Secretariat to “institute regular communication through visits at various levels.” But the message appeared to be a reference to regular use of ordinary dialogue channels between Pyongyang and the UN, including those related to humanitarian aid. On the original area of interest – the political situation on the Korean Peninsula – the two sides do not appear to have reached any noteworthy agreement. According to the UN press release, Feltman noted “the urgent need to prevent miscalculations and open channels to reduce the risks of conflict” on the Korean Peninsula and said that “there can only be a diplomatic solution to the situation, achieved through a process of sincere dialogue.” In contrast, North Korean officials stressed only that “the US’s hostile policies and nuclear threat against [North Korea]” were responsible for “the situation on the [Korean] Peninsula reaching its current state.” Also, while Feltman stressed the “need for the full implementation of all relevant Security Council resolutions,” North Korea reported him as having “recognized the negative impact that sanctions are having on UN humanitarian cooperation and expressed his intention to work so that cooperation proceeds in a way suited to humanitarian aims.” The reports from North Korea lend weight to speculation that its original reason for inviting Feltman was less to discuss the political situation on the Korean Peninsula than to relay concerns about UN sanctions against the North – a diplomatic effort to prevent the North Korean humanitarian aid efforts of UN organizations from being affected by the sanctions. Feltman’s visit had originally drawn attention for coming amid a deteriorating security situation on the peninsula in the wake of North Korea’s Nov. 29 test-launch of the Hwasong-15 ballistic missile, but Feltman does not appear to have met with leader Kim Jong-un. Instead, he met during his visit with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho and Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong-guk. By Park Byong-su, senior staff writer Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]
