[EXCERPTS] U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing
Friday, May 2, 1997 Briefer: John Dinger
QUESTION: Thank you, John. Representative Tony Hall, the humanitarian gave us a report on his trip to North Korea just a few minutes ago. It was his conclusion that there is an urgent need for a great deal more grain to be distributed rapidly in North Korea, primarily because, as Mr. Atwood, Brian Atwood, said, the North Koreans are going to eat their crops before they harvest them. They are going to eat their seed, things are so desperate. And secondly, John, I would like you to address the issue of thousands and thousands of North Korea military people, observed by Mr. Hall, who were thin, wasting away, wouldn't fit their clothes. Is this a dangerous situation? MR. DINGER: Maybe I will just address your second question first, briefly. We don't have any reason to believe that there is any increased danger due to the food shortage. No change in our view, I think, of immediate danger in North Korea because of the food shortage. Second, regarding Mr. Hall's assessment. He has been very, very forceful and articulate. He has been forceful and articulate in his description of what he saw when he went to North Korea. Of course, the World Food representatives have also been very active in North Korea and been involved in this crisis for some time. They have made several appeals, including, most recently, an expanded appeal for food aid. Clearly, there is a severe food crisis in North Korea. If fact, in all of our meetings with the North Koreans, they have stressed the dire situation there and the need for food aid. So although the details may vary or not be entirely clear to us, since State Department officials are not there on a regular basis; nevertheless, it is clear the situation is very, very serious. Of course, for that reason the United States has already contributed, I think, to each of the World Food Program's appeals. In fact, we are the largest contributor to those appeals. So, yes, there is a very serious problem there. Everybody, including the North Koreans, makes that very clear. Yes, the United States is very concerned and, yes, the United States in contributing towards this and, in fact, is the largest contributor. QUESTION: Would this government consider an accelerated aid program? MR. DINGER: We have always said that we are prepared to study any new appeals. We just met the last appeal, which was an expanded appeal. So without speculating on what new appeal may come from the World Food Program or perhaps another humanitarian organization, we are certainly willing to study any future appeals. QUESTION: John, there is a report out of Seoul that next week there will be a meeting, and that Chuck Kartman from this building will be attending, with the South Koreans, the Japanese, and the United States to talk about North Korea. Can you give us some details on that? MR. DINGER: Right. Chuck Kartman is going to be going to Tokyo next week. I think it is a one-day meeting in Tokyo on Wednesday. These will be trilateral talks with the South Koreans and the Japanese. The talks will focus on North Korea, not surprisingly. They, within that broader focus, will focus mostly on obviously the status of the South Korean and the American proposal for Four Party talks. It has been a couple weeks since Chuck Kartman was last in New York for those meetings. We have periodic talks in this format. This is another of those periodic talks. It will address the Four Party talks and also the food situation in North Korea. QUESTION: Have the North Koreans communicated in any way they are in a, sort of, working-level group or otherwise since the breakdown of the last session? MR. DINGER: I am not aware that we have any new communication from North Koreans on the Four Party talks. We have a couple of occasions that we will probably be seeing the North Koreans soon, not on the Four Party talks or on the food situation. But we do anticipate, as I mentioned yesterday, that there will be talks about the return of the remains probably soon. That is a DOD issue. So for details on who will be attending and when, I would check with them. Also, we still anticipate having missile talks in New York. Is it the 12th and 13th? Chuck Kartman will not be meeting with the North Koreans on this trip. QUESTION: John, back on the food issue. I believe Nick said the first of the two U.S. vessels is due on the 4th of May. Is that your recollection? MR. DINGER: That sounds about right, but I don't recollect accurately. As far as I know, there is no change. Whatever the records, the first two ships, the 4th, and then shortly thereafter. I don't know about whether we have lined up the exact shipment for the expanded appeal. QUESTION: Could you take the question as to the date of the arrival of the first one? MR. DINGER: We will see if there is any update on the shipments. QUESTION: You know that the Japanese Government is reluctant to give North Korea additional food shipments and assistance. Actually, what kind of conversation do you have with the Japanese Government on this issue? Or is Mr. Kartman going to have conversations with Japanese (inaudible) officials on this issue? Does he ask the Japanese Government to give North Korea another assistance? MR. DINGER: Well, in general, one of the issues is certainly going to be the food situation in North Korea. We have made it very clear that this is a decision for the Japanese Government to make. We have not, and certainly don't plan, to change our view on that. Contributing food aid to North Korea is a decision for the Japanese Government to make. We have contributed. Obviously, that is what we are doing. But we will leave it to the Japanese Government to make its decisions about food aid. QUESTION: But, John, to be fair, in addition to saying - on the one hand it's for Japan to make this decision, the spokesman has been very clear about saying that the United States thinks this is an urgent need and that all countries should contribute. So presumably that implies Japan, and he certainly made no exception for Japan or South Korea. MR. DINGER: It applies to all countries. QUESTION: Right. MR. DINGER: We are definitely not singling out Japan. QUESTION: So my question would be, in this meeting in Tokyo, is that one of the messages that Mr. Kartman is going to take? MR. DINGER: No. QUESTION: He is not? MR. DINGER: No. QUESTION: He is not going to tell them that the United States believes this is an urgent situation and all countries should contribute? MR. DINGER: All countries? I'm not going to read off his talking points. He is going, but he is not going to pressure Japan into providing food aid. QUESTION: So he won't even - he won't even be repeating the same kinds of positions that have been spoken publicly from this podium? MR. DINGER: He may well, but that is not a position that we have spoken publicly, that Japan should - singled out Japan for contributing food aid. QUESTION: No, no. But as I just said, when he asks - MR. DINGER: We are not sending any signals here to Japan in making that statement. That is a general statement, and we have led by example. Obviously, we have contributed food aid to Korea. It would be very odd if we said every country in the world shouldn't. That doesn't really make sense that we would do that. But to transfer it from the general to a specific, I just don't think you can do that accurately. QUESTION: Well, if you can't, then what is the point of making the statement? MR. DINGER: Let's not lose sight of what Japan does do. Japan is very heavily involved in KEDO, for example. So let's also keep in focus Japan's relationship with North Korea and what it does contribute to North Korea. QUESTION: Are you saying that the United States thinks that is enough? MR. DINGER: No, I'm just saying let's not lose sight of the overall picture here of our cooperation with Japan on issues dealing with North Korea. It's been very, very close - very, very close -- and deserves to be praised. We are not singling out Japan on the food aid issue. We, obviously, are contributing food aid to North Korea. We wouldn't do that if we didn't think it wasn't needed, if we didn't think it was a serious situation. Obviously, if we do it, we think others should do it as well, but we are in no way singling out Japan on this issue. QUESTION: John, on another subject -- QUESTION: Same subject. QUESTION: There is a something quoted in the - MR. DINGER: We'll have the same subject, Jim, for a second. QUESTION: So you don't have the details of the MIA-POW Talks? When it starts and who is the head of the delegation? MR. DINGER: No, it's a Pentagon issue. So whoever the head of the delegation is, it will be a Pentagon official. QUESTION: The North Korean side, you don't know who is the head of the delegation? MR. DINGER: No, please check with the Pentagon. QUESTION: (Inaudible) he is in New York, or he already left? MR. DINGER: I don't-- QUESTION: The North Korean delegation? MR. DINGER: I haven't checked recently. I am not sure. You might want to call up to their mission in New York. QUESTION: And the members who will have talks with the U.S.A., missile talks, talks next week? MR. DINGER: I do not know who the North Korean side is. The Pentagon may know who will be leading the North Korean delegation. Regarding whether the party is still there that was there two weeks ago, you might want to check with the North Korean mission in New York and ask them. Betsy. QUESTION: On the Middle East -- QUESTION: I have just one more. Sorry, I just want to try this one more time. If the United States is not going to single out Japan for food aid or urge them in any way to give aid again to North Korea, what else would be brought up with food aid? You said food aid or the situation in North Korea regarding famine will be brought up. MR. DINGER: Well, it's a major issue, clearly, and the humanitarian situation there is dire. I would add that in all of our talks with the North Koreans, they do bring the issue up. So if we are going to have meetings with the Japanese and South Koreans about the situation in North Korea, clearly, that is an element of those discussions. No surprise there.
