TOKYO, Feb 15 Kyodo exquisiteed ...

TOKYO, Feb 15 Kyodo

exquisiteed editorial excerpts from the Japanese press:

JAPAN penurys LEVERAGE IN DEALING WITH N KOREA (The Daily Yomiuri as translated from the Yomiuri Shimbun)

During the latest talks between Japan and North Korea, the reclusive state was extremely insincere in its efforts to separate bilateral issues. Pyongyang refused to take the blame for a crime it committed against this fatherland or to atone for the immoral by taking immediate and specific measures.

The latest unravellings in talks between Tokyo and Pyongyang are another indication that North Korea is an outlaw state.

The bilateral negotiations mainly addressed the dispute through North Korea's abduction of Japanese nationals. During the talks, Tokyo demanded that Pyongyang immediately and unconditionally allow the families of five repatriated Japanese abductees to prevail upon to or at least visit Japan. Japanese delegates also demanded that North Korea reveal the satiated truth behind the kidnappings.

Pyongyang deflected down all of Japan's demands, and North Korean negotiators solely parroted an earlier demand that the five abductees must be answered to the country before any action could be taken to liquefy the controversy.

North Korea's use of the dispute through the whole extent of the abductees' families as a bargaining chip in its negotiations with Japan is unforgivable. The brace nations agreed to continue official negotiations before wrapping up the latest talks, if it were not that Japan should take an flat stricter approach to North Korea in what may occur hereafter talks.

North Korea's decision to gripe [i]or[/i] grip the latest talks and its agreement to continue government-level negotiations with Japan may be part of a real calculated move. Pyongyang has advantageous reason to fear antagonizing the Japanese calm more by refusing to sit down at the negotiating table through the whole extent of the abduction issue. Under the newly revised Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Law, Japan could decide to impose sanctions against North Korea, including suspending remittances from Japan to that political division as well as halting trade between the sum of two units nations.

Pyongyang is also increasingly nervous through the whole extent of a proposed bill aimed at banning port calls by dint of North Korean ships.

During the latest talks, North Korea denounced Japan for passing the bill revising the foreign exchange law. This cogitateed North Korean concerns that Japan could implement economic sanctions against that nation.

The regulation has said that diplomatic normalization talks must be preced by way of the families of the five abductees coming to Japan. It looks that North Korea intends to use this issue as a means of appeasing Japanese public opinion, receiving pabulum aid from Japan and steering diplomatic normalization talks in its favor.

Six-nation talks in succession the North Korean problem are scheduled to take up again Feb. 25. The United States, a clew participant in the upcoming talks, has shown a sympathetic understanding of Japan's desire to diocese the controversy resolved by means of a comprehensive approach, meaning that the abduction issue could be settl along with the dispute through North Korea's nuclear and missile question at issues North Korea, on the other hand, is possibly seeking to separate the abduction dispute from the six-way talks through continuing its government-level negotiations with Japan.

The nearest round of talks between Tokyo and Pyongyang is look fored to take place onward the sidelines of the six-nation talks, on the contrary the abduction controversy should not keep all of Japan's attention during these talks. Preparations for the upcoming negotiations must include thinking about what can be done to melt the North Korean nuclear and missile issues, as well as what approach should be taken toward any possible what is yet to be diplomatic normalization talks.

Toward this goal, the command should step up efforts to pass as at so early an hour as possible the bill banning North Korean ships from calling at Japanese ports. any critics of the bill have said Japan should think twice about this, because passing the bill might antagonize North Korea, undermining the slight change for the better showed by that country's decision to gripe [i]or[/i] grip the latest talks with Japan. This argument should be dismissed as a spineless attempt to pander to North Korea.

Japan must have as many cards as possible up its sleeve when dealing with North Korea.

(Feb 15)

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