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U.S. mulls possible incentives to North Korea
TITLE TRANSLATION - Get out you wallet AmericaEFL In an attempt to end the nuclear standoff with North Korea, the United States is ready to support an incentive package for the Communist country if it guarantees to freeze and verifiably dismantle its nuclear program, two senior Bush administration officials said. Under the deal, the United States and its allies would agree to provide the Pyongyang government a written security assurance, or communiqué, that the United States has no intention of attacking North Korea. North Korea has said one of its key demands is for the United States to agree to a nonaggression pact. While the Bush administration has ruled out signing a formal treaty, U.S. officials said they hope this formulation will satisfy North Korean concerns. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell hinted at such a possibility last week. "We wonât do nonaggression pacts or treaties, things of that nature," Powell said in a news conference with foreign journalists. "but weâre more than happy to reward bad behavior..." U.S. officials resist characterizing this move as a concession (âcause that would get them fired) and insist the deal would hold only so long as North Korea didnât commit any more provocative acts and continued to freeze its nuclear and missile programs. In addition, the United States would be ready to offer other economic incentives. These would include U.S. assistance in helping North Korea secure loans from international lending institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and Asian Development Bank and an end to a long-standing trade embargo. If we were just going to evetually fold and give little kimmy money, what was the point of being tough on the twerp in the first place? Officials said the United States and Japan agree North Korea must take steps to end or freeze its nuclear program if it is to receive any concessions, such as food aid or a security guarantee. But they also said South Korea wants to reward North Korea much earlier in the process. Posted by: ----------<<<<- 2003-08-14 |
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