North Korean intentions perplex the world

SEOUL: North Korea has produced a series of proposals for improving inter-Korean relations this year. The proposals range from holding the next round of Red Cross talks Jan. 29-31 to discuss delayed reunions of dispersed family members to arranging fisheries talks and exchanges between taekwondo organizations in the South and the North.

North Korea also pledged that it would actively push ahead with a set of economic projects with the South this year including the reconnection of cross-border rail and road links and the establishment of joint flood control systems.

On the diplomatic front, Pyongyang has made it clear that it will continue its initiatives to improve relations with western countries.

We can speculate on the motives behind these North Korean initiatives. As alleged by some, the North Koreans may have taken these measures with the new Bush administration in Washington in mind.

By making conciliatory gestures toward the South, the communist country may have wanted to show officials in the Bush administration its continuing commitment to inter-Korean reconciliation and the ongoing talks on relations with the United States and other western countries.

The new North Korean initiatives may also be an extension of the new thinking of the North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, as others have postulated. Kim recently asked his people to abandon old ideas and develop a new way of thinking and a new viewpoint, according to Rodong Sinmun, the mouthpiece of the North Korean Workers' Party.

Or, the North may have realized that South Korean support is indispensable to its dire efforts to rehabilitate the economy. Or, perhaps, it is simply attempting to gain the upper hand in future negotiations with the South by taking the initiative in various projects.

Whatever the motivations might be, the series of North Korean proposals are encouraging. First, they may be the signs that the regime in the North will continue to commit itself to inter- Korean agreements on reconciliation and cooperative projects. The commitment will certainly help facilitate the North Korean effort to improve relations with the United States and other western countries.

The likelihood that the Pyongyang regime has the new U.S. administration in mind is not a bad thing, either. Because of their ideological inclination and past experience, many people both within and outside Korea predict that the officials in the Bush administration may take a harder line in dealing with North Koreans.

If North Korea is taking the initiative in improving relations with the South in order to improve American perceptions of the North, it would indicate that it is serious about having dialogue with the U.S. government.

Such a stance adopted by North Korea will also make it easier for American officials to decide whether to continue the current policy of engagement of the communist country.

There is no question that prospects for future Washington- Pyongyang relations, as well as Seoul-Pyongyang relations, are much dependent upon the North Koreans. President-elect George W. Bush has reportedly suggested that he might be willing to pick up on the framework of his predecessor Bill Clinton for a deal with North Korea to control its production and export of missiles, depending on North Korean attitudes.

Despite remarkable developments in inter-Korean reconciliation over the past seven months and considerable progress in missile talks between the United States and North Korea, however, many decision-makers both in Seoul and Washington remain unsure about North Korean intentions.

They say the progress made mainly in the economic fields so far falls far short of assuring them of fundamental change in North Korean policy. They are also not sure whether the North Koreans are really willing to give up their military program in return for economic and other incentives that may be helpful to the recovery of their economy.

We firmly believe that the process of bringing long-awaited peace to the Korean Peninsula should continue. Achieving this will require not only our efforts but also the corresponding commitments of North Korea and neighboring countries.

It would be the most unfortunate if all our hard work over the past several months came to nothing because of imprudent actions on the part of some of those involved in the negotiating process. In this sense, the recent North Korean peace overtures toward the South are more than welcome.

--The Korea Herald/Asia News Network