SEOUL, April 3 (UPI) -- A South Korean special envoy went to North Korea Wednesday to urge Pyongyang to allow international inspections of nuclear facilities.
Lim Dong-won's mission is aimed at breaking a deadlock in the divided peninsula Wednesday by urging the communist state to allow international inspections of its nuclear facilities.
South Korean President Kim Dae-jung's special envoy held talks with his North Korean counterpart, Kim Yong Sun, shortly after arriving in Pyongyang, South Korean officials said.
Kim Yong Sun, a confidant of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, is the highest-ranking North Korean official in charge of inter-Korean relations.
Lim called on North Korean officials to disclose their country's nuclear history fully by permitting inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency as part of efforts to address international concerns about Pyongyang's suspected development of weapons of mass destruction.
Lim, a presidential adviser on foreign affairs and national security, also urged the reclusive country to accept a U.S. proposal to open dialogue on improving bilateral ties, saying it would help ease growing tension on the peninsula, according to South Korean officials.
The envoy's trip came after analysts' warning of a revival of nuclear tensions between the United States and North Korea. Nine years ago, the United States became worried that North Korea was developing nuclear weapons.
In October 1994 Pyongyang agreed to freeze its nuclear program in return for a U.S. promise to build safer light-water nuclear power plants for the energy-starved nation. But U.N. officials who have been monitoring nuclear activity in North Korea have not yet been allowed to conduct thorough inspections.
On the eve of Lim's arrival, North Korea reiterated a threat to abandon the nuclear pact, blaming the United States for delays in building the reactors, which it said caused acute energy shortages in the country.
"If the DPRK (North Korea) had pushed ahead with its plan for nuclear energy development for a peaceful purpose, its acute shortage of power would have already been solved," the state-run Rodong Sinmun newspaper said. "The DPRK neither feels scared nor daunted by the desperate moves of the U.S. warmongers. We will return artillery fire for the U.S. imperialists' rifle fire," it said.
Earlier this week, U.S. President George W. Bush announced that he would release $95 million to North Korea to fund construction of two light-water reactors by an international consortium, part of the 1994 accord.
South Korean officials said Lim would deliver a U.S. message of reconciliation to the North Korean side. But North Korean delegates attributed the rising tension and stalemated inter-Korean relations to Bush's criticism of the communist state, calling for Washington to drop a "hostile" stance against it, officials said.
Lim, who is on a three-day visit to make the first public contact between the two rival nations since November, will carry a personal message from the South Korean president to the North Korean leader.
Lim's efforts in the North would focus on preventing the buildup of tensions on the peninsula and open the channels of stalemated North-South relations.
"I will convey fully President Kim's thoughts on peace and national reconciliation and listen to the views of the highest authorities in North Korea," Lim said at a press conference before his departure for Pyongyang.
Kim Dae-jung, in the final year of his presidency, is eager to revive his "sunshine policy" of peaceful engagement with the North, despite harsh criticism by the conservative opposition.
"We hopes the special envoy's trip will open the way for dialogue and mark a turning point in South-North relations," said the presidential spokeswoman, Park Son-sook. During his stay in North Korea, Lim might meet with Kim Jong Il, officials said. No journalists accompanied Lim's 7-member delegation on the trip.
"Lim's mission may be the last chance to prevent a revival of security crisis on the peninsula," said Suh Dong-man, a Sangji University professor. "The two Koreas are urged to reach breakthroughs for peace and stability."
