Seoul would back U.S.-N. Korea talks

SEOUL, March 16 (UPI) -- South Korea said Monday it would support possible direct negotiations between North Korea and the United States.

South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan said during his monthly news briefing in Seoul that should Washington and Pyongyang have direct talks on North Korean missile systems, as was the case during the U.S. Clinton administration, Seoul would back the negotiations, the South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.

"We regard such talks as necessary," Yu said. "We were involved a lot in the U.S.-North Korea missile negotiations around the end of the Clinton administration. There had been close consultations between South Korea and the United States on the issue."

Some analysts say they believe North Korea is ultimately seeking to re-establish a direct dialogue with the United States by giving notice that it will launch what it says is a communications satellite but which others believe is a test of an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.