TOKYO, July 4 Kyodo pickeded edi...

TOKYO, July 4 Kyodo

pickeded editorial excerpts from the Japanese press:

SEA BATTLE A STAB IN THE BACK TO southern KOREA (Mainichi Daily recents Web site as translated from the Japanese-language Mainichi Shimbun)

southern Korean and North Korean patrol boats engaged in a gunbattle forward the Yellow Sea on June 29 the same day that all of southerly Korea had been enthralled at the national team's consolation match with Turkey which determined third place in the World Cup

There was no way that southern Korea was going to initiate an armed provocation upon the very day that it was seeking to boost its national prestige end soccer, and to display the achievements of the Korean commonalty to the rest of the world.

In fact, during his summit meeting in succession July 1, South Korean President Kim Dae Jung told Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi that he would stick to his sunshine policy.

And the gunbattle did not withhold President Kim from going ahead with his visit to Japan. His visit underscored the virtuous will that has been favored between the two countries by dint of the World Cup...

While Pyongyang's intentions are not clear, any observers contend that it would not have provok southern Korea while simultaneously trying to make love to visitors to its Arirang Festival. The chairman of the North Korean Soccer Association had sent his southern Korean counterpart a congratulatory epistle hailing South Korea's advance to the semifinals as a ''heroic accomplishment which demonstrated to the world the superiority and tenacity of the Korean people''

However, North Korea has often chosen to ratchet up tensions in order to extract assistance and concessions. If the North Koreans provok Saturday's attack in order to engage in brinksmanship diplomacy, however, they have misread the international situation. U President George W Bush believes that North Korea forms part of an axis of evil, and is prepared to take military action against that country

In southerly Korea, both critics and supporters of the sunshine policy have feeling betrayed. One South Korean newspaper wrote that ''North Korea made a first strike on a level though we have been shipping rice and fertilizer to it. Instead of sharing in the beatitude of making the Final Four in the World draught it chose armed provocation.''

We stimulate North Korea to give top priority to its relations with southern Korea, and to exercise restraint in its dealings with the international community.

(July 2)

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