21 October 2002
Non-nuclear North Korea in China's Interest, U.S. Officials Say
(Foreign Press Center Oct. 21 background briefing) (410)
By Nadine Siak
Washington File Staff Writer
Senior administration officials told foreign journalists at a
background briefing at the Foreign Press Center October 21 in
Washington that the question of what the United States will do now
that North Korea has nullified the 1994 Agreed Framework is a
"mulitilateral issue" requiring consultation with other foreign
countries before any decision is made.
"It is in no one's interest, we believe, to have a nuclear-armed North
Korea. And therefore we need to work together, particularly with those
states in the region such as our allies, in the case of South Korea
and Japan, as well as with China and Russia, to get North Korea to do
what North Korea must do as a next step, and that is the verifiable
and immediate dismantlement of its nuclear weapons program," one
senior administration official said.
Senior administration officials stressed that the United States
considers the "complete, verifiable and immediate dismantlement" of
North Korea's nuclear-weapons program a non-negotiable issue.
When asked by a reporter about how the United States might induce
China to assist in pressuring North Korea to abandon its
enriched-uranium program, one senior administration official responded
that "the strongest incentive is China's own national interest."
"I think a Chinese nightmare is a nuclearized North Korea. The Chinese
do not want another declared nuclear power on their border," the
official said.
A senior administration official said President Bush and Chinese
President Jiang Zemin would most likely discuss North Korea when Jiang
visits Bush's Crawford ranch October 25.
He added that non-proliferation, human rights, trade, Taiwan, and Iraq
were likely to be discussed by the two presidents as well.
In response to a reporter's question, a senior administration official
said military-to-military relations between the United States and
China "will be touched on as part of the overall attempt to strengthen
the U.S.-China relationship" during the Crawford visit.
President Bush views military-to-military relations between China and
the United States "as an opportunity to diminish ... mistrust" between
the two nations, the official added, and "he thinks it can play an
important role in trying to ensure that we have a smoother
relationship in the future."
(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
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