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Thursday, April 3, 2003

The United Nations' IAEA Board of Governors on Feb. 12 declared that Pyongyang breached the NPT Safeguards Agreement, and IAEA Executive Director Mohammed ElBaradei informed the council by letter. Heavily preoccupied by Iraq, as well as more routine matters, the panel has taken this long to take up the item.

After meeting for several hours to decide on its program of work for the month of April, under the presidency of Mexico, with Ambassador Adolfo Aguilar Zinser sitting in the chair, diplomats on the 15-member panel emerged to tell reporters North Korea would be the topic of discussion next Wednesday.

"There have been some experts meeting on the subject in the intervening time and the proposal is to have consultations on April 9 to get an update on the situation," said U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte. "But there was nothing discussed today about an outcome of those consultations or any prejudgment of any outcome, just the fact that there would be a discussion of the North Korea question."

Pushed on the subject, particularly on a Washington-sought statement condemning Pyongyang for being the first nation to bow out of the NPT, he said, "I think I'll just leave it at that at the moment. This is a very delicate subject, and I think that would be the best way to leave it."

North Korea's northern neighbor, China, prefers the North Korean nuclear situation be settled bilaterally between Washington and Pyongyang, as does North Korea, which seeks a non-aggression pact with the United States. While Washington would prefer to see the council impose sanctions, North Korea said that would amount to "an act of war."

Pyongyang disabled IAEA monitoring cameras, expelled inspectors and allegedly reopened the previously shuttered Yongbyon nuclear plant capable of producing plutonium for bombs, saying the United States reneged on a deal to provide oil for generating electricity.

The day the panel takes up North Korea is just one day before the date when Pyongyang would be dispensed from its obligations under the NPT, from which it had withdrawn, Aguilar Zinser said at a briefing for reporters on the work program. He added that it was important to make sure that the results of the meeting were constructive in terms of finding a solution to a problem of international scope and relevance.

On Iraq, Aguilar Zinser said that although there were still deep differences of opinion within the council, it had been decided that the short-term focus would be on humanitarian assistance to Iraq. That was not yet reflected in the work program, however, because there was agreement that the humanitarian agenda would be developed as time went by and as the situation evolved.

He also said that possibilities would be explored in connection with humanitarian access and political and diplomatic measures to bring an end to hostilities.

"I will not pretend that this is not an extremely difficult topic," the council president said, adding that divisions among panel members were still extremely clear-cut.

Also important, according to the council president, was the subject of post-conflict rebuilding of Iraq, which was under discussion in the background although no consultations have been scheduled on that issue.

In his earlier remarks, Negroponte said he thought there had been ample opportunity in the council for all members of the United Nations to express their views on Iraq and there was no need to bring it before the General Assembly.

"We see no reason whatsoever to transfer or to transport this issue to the General Assembly when it is very much under the cognizance of the Security Council and, in fact, as a result of our rather lengthy discussion here of the schedule for the month, there are going to be numerous occasions during the month of April that various aspects of the Iraq question will be discussed in the Security Council," Washington's envoy said. "So we see no necessity whatsoever for a discussion of the Iraq question in the General Assembly."

The assembly, acting only in an advisory role, could take up the topic if the council were deadlocked or not actively considering it.

Negroponte said that among the topics under the Iraq header would be humanitarian aid, the oil-for-food program, the U.N. Iraq-Kuwait Observer Mission -- "and what the disposition of that entity ought to be."

Washington's envoy also anticipated "a briefing perhaps from the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission and IAEA as well" on Iraq.

Copyright 2003 by United Press International.

All rights reserved.

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