Group to propose North Korea plan

PYONGYANG, North Korea, Nov. 1 (UPI) -- The next U.S. president should send former White House officials Henry Kissinger and William Perry to negotiate with North Korea, a think tank says.

The non-partisan National Committee on American Foreign Policy says the men could help end the stalemate over Pyongyang's nuclear program, The Korea Times reported Saturday.

The proposal is expected to be announced Friday. It calls for North Korean officials to complete a verifiable denuclearization, and in turn Washington would offer a security guarantee as well as other economic and political concessions.

Perry, a former defense secretary, visited North Korea as a special envoy by former President Bill Clinton in 1999. Kissinger was state secretary under former President Richard Nixon.

The New York think tank's proposal will be officially announced at the end of a close-door discussion by the committee next week that will be attended by North Korean officials, Perry, Kissinger and the current chief American nuclear envoy, Christopher Hill, among others.

Two foreign policy advisers from Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama's campaign will also attend the meeting.

The NCAFP describes itself as an activist organization "dedicated to the resolution of conflicts that threaten U.S. interests."