Six Party Talks are Back On
By Joshua Harford, 10.27.05

North Korea agreed to return to six-party talks after signaling a reluctance to continue negotiations. The talks are aimed at ending North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. China, Japan, North and South Korea, Russia and the United States are going to participate. No date has been set, but the next round of talks is expected for early November in Beijing.

North Korea has said publicly that they already possess Nuclear weapons. Bill Richardson, former US Ambassador to the United Nations and current Governor of New Mexico, said after visiting the communist nation last week. He toured the Youngbyon nuclear facility and talked to on-site personnel.

Richardson learned that the North Koreans had reprocessed spent fuel into plutonium, a key component in nuclear weapons, as reported by the Associated Press.

“My sense was two [bombs], perhaps, that's my sense," Richardson said according to the Associated Press. "I pressed, but that's the best I got - but I can't verify that."

North Korea agreed in September to dismantle its nuclear weapons program. However, they later said that the program would continue until the west helped build a light-water nuclear reactor for energy creation.

Richardson said North Korea would return to the talks unconditionally, allaying fears that the energy issue would keep negotiations from resuming.

The State Department said they were open to talks about a cool water reactor. However, they insisted that North Korea dismantle its nuclear weapons program first. The US State Department said Japan, China and Russia all agreed with this philosophy.

“There's a sequence that will be followed if there is to be even the beginning of discussions about the subject of a light-water reactor and that is that North Korea must dismantle their nuclear weapons programs,” US State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said as found on the State Department website.

The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty gives permission to nations like North Korea to develop nuclear energy. However, it also states that only the United States, England, France, Russia and China may poses nuclear weapons. This is because they had developed the technology prior to 1968, when the treaty was written. They are also the only permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.

There are concerns that the light-water reactor could be used to produce weapons grade material. However, Richardson said North Korea would allow the west to monitor the operations of the reactor.

“The six-party talks are crucial. They believe very strongly in resolving those issues because they recognize it's an opportunity for them to get out of international isolation,” Richardson said.

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