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| Korea |
| U.S. Delegation Visits N. Korean Nukes |
| 2004-01-10 |
| An unofficial delegation of Americans who visited North Korea said Saturday they saw the country’s disputed Yongbyong nuclear facility. The five-member American delegation was allowed to see all of the sites they had requested, said one member, John W. Lewis, a Stanford University professor emeritus of international relations. Did we happen to include any inspectors or nuclear physicists among them? "We did go to Yongbyon," Lewis told reporters after arriving at Beijing’s Capital Airport from Pyongyang. He was referring to the nuclear facility that has been closed to outsiders since North Korea expelled U.N. inspectors at the end of 2002. However, the Americans said they wouldn’t give any more details about the visit, which began Tuesday, until two delegation members who are on the staff of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee had reported to Washington. Any chance either of them was a trained inspector? Lewis stressed that the trip was a private effort aimed at improving understanding of North Korean issues. "We are a private delegation," he said. "We were not there to negotiate. We were not there to be inspectors." Let’s hope that’s just a weak attempt at cover. North Korea has been under international pressure to give up its nuclear weapons programs. But the communist regime is digging in with its hardline rhetoric, heralding tough negotiations. On Friday, the communist state said that it would be No probs, back to "engaged apathy" it is. A North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman hinted that the recent decisions by Libya and Iran to allow intrusive inspections of their suspected weapons programs would not affect its strategy. "The United States is hyping recent developments in some Middle East countries, the cases orchestrated by itself," the spokesman said, without citing Libya and Iran by name. "It is seized with hallucination that the same would happen on the Korean Peninsula and some countries echo this ’hope’ and ’expect’ some change." Generally, a diet deficient in calories and protein makes you hallucinate. You were saying something? In comments carried by North Korea’s official KCNA news agency, he said North Korea "has never been influenced by others and this will not happen in the future." Except for that time the Chinese turned off the oil pipeline. As an example. "To expect any ’change’ from the DPRK stand is as foolish as expecting a shower from clear sky," the spokesman said. Dang! He finally said something I agree with! |
| Posted by:Steve White |