The diplomatic community is carefully watching whether the recent Pyongyang trip by U.S. special representative for North Korean policy Stephen Bosworth will mark a turning point in the resumption of the stalled six-party nuclear talks. Bosworth visited Pyongyang on December 8th as a special envoy of U.S. President Barack Obama and stayed there for three days. The U.S. special envoy’s trip to North Korea was the first such trip in seven years, the last being when then-U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James Kelly visited the North in October 2002. It was also the first bilateral contact between the two countries since the Obama administration’s inauguration. In a press conference on December 10th, Bosworth said he met with senior North Korean officials, including First Vice Foreign Minister Kang Sok-ju. The U.S. envoy added that he neither met North Korean leader Kim Jong-il nor had requested such meeting. Stressing that meetings in North Korea were focused on hearing out one another’s positions, not on negotiating, Bosworth claimed the meetings were very useful. Surrounding his vague comments, experts have produced varying evaluations concerning the result of the recent North Korea-U.S. talks. Here’s Professor Yu Ho-yeol from the North Korean Studies Department at Korea University to explain.

High-ranking officials from North Korea and the U.S. held a rare meeting to figure out their respective views on a solution to the nuclear issue. The two countries have now started bilateral dialogue, which I think is highly significant. After the Pyongyang visit, Bosworth said in a briefing that the two sides had exchanged serious yet practical opinions. Although his comment may reflect diplomatic rhetoric, it does seem that officials from the two countries frankly discussed key issues. Earlier, the U.S. explained to North Korea that the communist country would be provided economic assistance and a security guarantee—something the North hopes to obtain—as long as it dismantles its nuclear programs and implements the September 19th joint statement drafted in the six-party nuclear talks in 2005. North Korea, too, expressed its own opinion about this issue, and the recent bilateral meeting proved greatly helpful for the two sides to understand each other. In this sense, I think Bosworth described the meeting as being “useful.”

North Korea also gave the meeting a positive evaluation on December 11th, one day after the dialogue with the U.S. which it says closed the gap in opinion between the two countries. A North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman said the two sides saw eye to eye on the need to resume the six-party talks and on the importance of carrying out the September 19th joint statement. On the same day, the U.S. State Department said in a regular briefing that the U.S.-North Korea dialogue, which was held during Bosworth’s North Korea trip, was a good start. Many experts agree that the latest meeting produced some results, since North Korea did shift from its previous position that the six-party talks were gone forever, although there was no clear agreement on the resumption of the multilateral negotiations. Here again is Professor Yu.

The United Nations imposed sanctions on North Korea shortly after the North conducted its second nuclear test in May this year. In protest of the U.N. move, North Korea declared that it would never return to the six-party talks. During the latest North Korea-U.S. talks, however, Pyongyang left open the possibility of rejoining the six-way talks. In outlining North Korea’s denuclearization process, the 2005 joint statement comprehensively addresses key issues, including a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula, economic and energy assistance for North Korea, normalization of relations between North Korea and the U.S. and those between North Korea and Japan. Once the six-party talks restart, detailed follow-up measures pertaining to a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula will be discussed in depth. We’ll have to watch how involved countries will prepare for those follow-up measures.

Meanwhile, a Georgian cargo plane carrying North Korean weapons was seized by Thailand on Saturday. Various North Korean-made weapons, including missiles and rocket-propelled grenades, were discovered in the aircraft, which had stopped for refueling at Don Muang Airport in Bangkok. The Thai government immediately seized the weapons and arrested five crewmen, whose nationalities are Kazakhstani and Belarusian. After questioning the crew, the authorities secured a statement from them that the final destination of the North Korean weapons was Colombo, Sri Lanka. But the authorities say additional questioning will be necessary. There are concerns that the incident may spoil the hard-earned good sentiments for dialogue between North Korea and the U.S. Professor Yu explains the potential repercussions of the mishap.

This is a violation of the U.N. Resolution 1874, which stipulates a ban on any arms exports from North Korea. The sanction was imposed in the wake of the North’s second nuclear test in May. The latest seizure will remind North Korea that it cannot escape surveillance from the U.S. or international sanctions. The U.S. is expected to maintain its previous position that it employs sanctions in tandem with dialogue when dealing with North Korea until the North takes specific actions to come back to the six-party talks and dismantle its nuclear programs. The Thai government will report results of their questioning to the sanction committee of the U.N. Security Council. The repercussions of this incident may vary, depending on whether it is simply an illegal weapon transaction or it is an act of sponsoring terrorism by providing weapons to a terrorist group. Also, we have to watch how North Korea will respond to the international sanctions, led by the U.S.

The incident offers much-needed momentum for Washington’s so-called two-track strategy to pursue both dialogue and sanctions. Obviously, North Korea engages in dialogue on one hand, while exporting weapons on the other hand. Consequently, Washington’s principle of maintaining sanctions is expected to gain strength. Yet, most diplomatic experts agree that this incident will not affect the overall atmosphere for dialogue. North Korea and the U.S. have started the dialogue process toward the ultimate goals, such as North Korea’s denuclearization and the conclusion of a peace treaty that will replace the Korean War armistice. So they are expected to try to minimize fallout from the North’s latest foiled attempt to export weapons. Professor Yu says the two sides will inevitably hold follow-up talks in order to use North Korea-U.S. talks to nudge the North toward the resumption of the six-party talks.

Further questioning will be necessary, but I don’t think this incident will chill North Korea-U.S. relations. It doesn’t seem that the two countries completely resolved their differing views on pending issues during the latest bilateral talks. They need to discuss those issues in depth at additional meetings before North Korea decides to come back to the six-way talks. I imagine such meetings may take place at the end of this year or early next year. In that process, China, as the host country of the six-way talks, could persuade North Korea to return to the talks as a means of creating a favorable mood for reconvening the long-stalled negotiations.

Following the U.S. special envoy’s Pyongyang visit, North Korea has taken a step forward in the course of returning to the six-party talks. But all those efforts might prove a failure, if the seizure of a plane loaded with North Korean weapons influences international opinion negatively. North Korea must bear in mind that it should refrain from taking any action to betray trust of the international community for the resumption of the six-party talks and some positive results from the talks.


[Interview] N. Korean Defector-Turned-Boxer Retains her WBA Title
It was my second title defense as the World Boxing Association featherweight champion. My opponent was a Japanese boxer, who fought far better than I had expected. It wasn’t an easy match at all. In the second round, I knocked her down once. From that moment, I regained confidence. And I eventually won the match! I’m so happy to retain my title.

A 19-year-old female boxer is now the talk of the town, as she won the second bout defending her WBA title. Her name is Choi Hyun-mi, and she has been dubbed the Korean version of “Million Dollar Baby.” On November 21st, Choi won the match against Japanese boxer Denku Tsubasa, currently No. 4 in the WBA ranking, in unanimous decision of 3:0 Her fighting skill was impressive, of course, but her background drew special attention; she’s a former North Korean defector. Choi turned professional when she was in her second year in high school in South Korea. Last year, she became the youngest female boxer to grab the WBA featherweight title. To achieve this feat, the teenager has made strenuous efforts, overcoming intensive training here in South Korea.

I repeated training over and over again, running and running. It’s challenging to win a championship, but it’s also difficult to retain it. The more I hold defensive matches, the more I exercise. I usually get up at 6 or 6:30 in the morning. I run 8-10 kilometers in the morning training session, and I practice basic skills, like sparring, at 2 or 3 in the afternoon. I receive training almost every day, except holidays. It’s really hard to watch my weight, since I easily gain weight. For me, losing weight is more difficult than training. But this is what I have to do. I have a dream that I can never give up.

Choi began boxing when she was 13 years old in North Korea, on her gym teacher’s recommendation. Her abilities were conspicuous, and she was admitted to the boxing team at the Kim Cheol-ju College of Education, which is known to train talented athletes with the potential to participate in the Olympic Games. Her punches are so strong and sharp that it’s hard to believe she’s truly a 19-year-old girl. The promising boxer came to South Korea in 2004 with her family. For a time she stayed away from boxing, envisioning a new life. But she soon realized she just couldn’t give up her dream of becoming a champion. She chose a challenging life as a boxer, despite the fact that she was one of the ordinary teenage girls who love chatting and try to look pretty.

I had already known that training was difficult, so I decided to study hard and live like ordinary people after coming to South Korea. But I found the school environment here was very different from that of North Korea. The school subjects were unfamiliar to me, and I found it difficult to follow study programs. Boxing was the only thing that I could do better than my South Korean counterparts. The sport never lies. On the boxing ring, I can prove how hard I trained. In boxing, my efforts pay off. People may think boxing is all about beating and being beaten. But it involves a number of skills. It’s really thrilling to use those skills on the ring. I love that feeling.

Choi defected from North Korea, became a professional boxer and won a championship. The young athlete is moving toward her dream, step by step, finding her way out of troubles. She is walking down a bumpy road, but her dream will make her future brighter.