South Korea chief negotiator to the six-party talks said flexibility could override the crucial differences between parties, indicating there is still opportunity for North Korea to have a light-water reactor.

 

"We have opened the window of opportunity for North Korea to have a light-water reactor in the future," said South Korea Deputy Foreign Minister Song Min-soon in BeijingThursday morning.

 

The six parties, China, North Korea, US, South Korea, Russia and Japan, reopened the second phase of the fourth round of talks in Beijing Tuesday after a five-week recess.

 

The delegations of North Korea and US held their first one-on-one consultations Wednesday afternoon. The chief US negotiator Christopher Hill described the bilateral meeting as "lengthy" and fruitless, saying that the North Korean delegation insists that "they want to include in the agreement a light-water reactor" in exchange for scraping all its nuclear programs.

 

"The light-water reactor for us is a nonstarter," Hill said Thursday as he left the hotel. He will meet with the North Korean delegation later on the third day of the talks.

 

"Let's see if we can do a little better today," Hill added.

 

Instead Hill said Pyongyang could get conventional energy, security guarantee and economic assistance under the fourth draft circulated by China. Song urged North Korea and US to take flexibility, adding that the South Korean delegation is working to help expand consensus between the two main parties.

 

"Flexibility is indispensable in the talks," said Song. "Only if (North Korea and US) show flexibility, it is possible to reach compromise."

 

Analyst says it is unlikely for Pyongyang to soften its stance now. "There is little possibility for North Korea to make concessions on its right to civilian nuclear programs from both political and economic perspectives," said Piao Jianyi, a professor with the Asia-Pacific Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

 

The stumbling block remains whether Pyongyang was allowed for the right to have a civilian nuclear program. North Korea insisted on the right while US wanted full dismantlement of its nuclear program.

 

Hill think North Korea's demand for light-water reactor has gone beyond the fourth draft of statement. Instead, Hill urged North Korea to focus on the draft.

 

"We consider the fourth draft to be an very excellent basis for reaching the goals of principles that will guide us to the eventual agreement," said Hill on Wednesday evening after a one-on-one meeting with the North Korean delegation.

 

"I think the most important is to stick to the fourth draft, try to make minimum changes and not to engage major surgery to the draft," Hill said.

 

The fourth draft of a common document proposed by China during the first phase meeting starting late July remained the focus of the talks.

 

However, the emerging core differences have overshadowed the outcome of an agreement on a set of principles.

 

Song said the chief delegates of the talks are expected to meet on Thursday afternoon. The timeframe or agenda will be disclosed after the meeting. The first three rounds of six-party talks ended inconclusively. The fourth round began in late July and then went into five-week recess.

 

(Xinhua News Agency September 15, 2005)