*EPF404 10/24/2002
Text: Powell Says Asian Allies Want to Consult on North Korea
(Secretary Powell's October 23 press briefing in Los Cabos) (1790)

Secretary of State Colin Powell says America's allies in Asia want to consult among themselves and with the United States on North Korea.

In an October 23 press briefing in Los Cabos, Mexico at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference, Powell said the APEC meeting would provide an opportunity for talks on Pyongyang's decision to nullify the Agreed Framework, an agreement North Korea signed with the United States in 1994 to forego nuclear weapons development, and for talks on the communist state's admission that it has been violating the terms of that agreement.

Powell said all the nations concerned with North Korea's actions are in touch with the Pyongyang regime, asking for an explanation.

"The Japanese have made it clear that normalization can't go forward" between Tokyo and Pyongyang, Powell said.

There can be no economic aid for the ailing communist state "when we have this kind of behavior," he added.

South Korea is delivering that message, while "the Russians have asked for clarification from the North Koreans on this issue and I'm confident that the Chinese are also engaging with the North Koreans," Powell said.

Powell said the issue of North Korea's nuclear efforts was one that had to be approached with care. He said the United States is consulting closely with its allies on the matter.

Although the Agreed Framework is an agreement between Pyongyang and Washington, North Korea's actions affect nations that "have a significant equity in that arrangement, and that's why we're consulting so closely with them," Powell said.

During the press conference, Powell also responded to questions concerning the draft resolution on Iraq's disarmament the United States has presented to the United Nations.

The Secretary of State said the United States is open to suggested changes in the draft resolution, but stressed that the measure "cannot just be another pointless resolution that Iraq can sit back and smile at, and not comply with in the knowledge that there will be no consequences as a result of their non-compliance."

"That is not acceptable. The United States will not accept that, President Bush has made it clear that this would be an unacceptable outcome," he said.

Following is a transcript of Secretary of State Colin Powell's October 23 press briefing:

(begin text)

Department of State
Press Briefing

Secretary Colin L. Powell
Westin Regina Hotel
Los Cabos, Mexico
October 23, 2002

SECRETARY POWELL: Good evening, I'll answer a few questions before heading off to a dinner.

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, have you heard anything from Moscow on the situation there in the theater?

SECRETARY POWELL: No, I have not, I've been following our reports from the State Department Operations Center, but I'm sure I'll learn more in the course of the evening. It's a tragic situation, it shows us once again the kind of world we're living in where innocent people can be put at this kind of risk and I hope the Russian authorities will be able to resolve this peacefully without any loss of life.

QUESTION: Can you tell us anything on the latest developments in the Security Council? Do you feel that you're making progress towards a resolution?

SECRETARY POWELL: Well, we've had intense but useful conversations with the Perm Five Members over the last couple of days and we felt that sufficient progress had been made that it was appropriate at this time to circulate the resolution in its current form to all 15 members and that's what Ambassador Negroponte did earlier today. Now all fifteen members will have an opportunity to examine our proposed resolution in detail, and then I believe they'll be meeting again on Friday to go over it, as is the case in such matters, line by line, paragraph by paragraph.

We have listened carefully to our friends in the Perm Five and also consulted with the 10 elected members, and we have tried to be accommodating where it was appropriate, but we are not going to move off basic principles, and the basic principles are those you've heard us discuss on a number of occasions of recent weeks. One, there has to be a clear indictment that Iraq has been in material breach of its obligations. Two, there have to be consequences for this kind of behavior if it continues. Three, let's put in place a tough inspection regime, an inspection regime that cannot be defeated or deterred or disrupted by Iraqi misbehavior.

We've been working very close with Dr. Hans Blix and Dr. El Baradei of IAEA, to hear their ideas of the kind of regime they'd like to see and have them listen to our ideas as well. And what we want to do is give them what they need to do the job, and that job has to be the disarmament of Iraq, of weapons of mass destruction. And it's also absolutely clear that this issue of consequences has to remain in any resolution so that Iraq knows that if it continues this pattern of violation, it will suffer consequences. This is not a new concept or new language, it is language that has been in previous UN resolutions with respect to consequences of continued failure to comply.

So we will continue our discussions and consultations, and we'll see where we go. I don't think this will go on for a much, much longer period of time, there is now a resolution before the Security Council for circulation, we'll see what comments come back.

President Bush will have an opportunity to engage a number of leaders over the next several days, President Jiang Zemin of China on Thursday, and President Putin on Saturday, and also President Fox on Saturday, President Fox of course, as you all know, Mexico is one of the members of the Security Council, one of the elected members of the Security Council, and there are other meetings that are taking place that will move the process along.

QUESTION: Do you still consider this a negotiation? Is there anything to negotiate as far as the United States is concerned, will we accept amendments to the resolution? Do you expect there to be any changes at all?

SECRETARY POWELL: It is a consultation, we put it out for circulation, meaning that a number of countries are reading it complete for the first time in its current version, and when they get back together on Friday, no doubt that members will have had 24 hours to consult with their capitals, and will come forward with ideas, and we will listen to those ideas, but we have done a great deal in recent weeks to try to accommodate some of the issues that were raised, but we cannot walk away from the basic principles that I described earlier, or else there's no point in it.

It cannot just be another pointless resolution that Iraq can sit back and smile at, and not comply with in the knowledge that there will be no consequences as a result of their non-compliance. That is not acceptable. The United States will not accept that, President Bush has made it clear that this would be an unacceptable outcome.

QUESTION: Listening to their views, would you, is the United States open to any changes in this second revision?

SECRETARY POWELL: We have been, because we are listening to their views and consulting, obviously, if they come up with points that seem to make sense and don't violate the principles that I've laid out, we would certainly look at it. I can't say whether any changes would be accepted or not, but it's not a fiat that we have put down. It is a circulating draft, and we will see what reaction it draws. I have to give all of the members time to reflect on it, and consult with their capitals.

QUESTION: Does the fact that you are opening it now to the E-10 as well mean that you are pretty confident, you have to be very confident, since you can't have a rejection from the P-5, I mean, are you confident that there's not going to be a rejection?

SECRETARY POWELL: I'm not going to predict what any member of the body would do, the Security Council would do, especially members of the P-5, they can speak for themselves, but I think that a lot of the work that has taken place over the last couple of weeks have dealt with some of the concerns, some of the issues that were raised by members of the Security Council. We felt that the resolution reached the point where it was appropriate to expand it out beyond the Permanent Five to all 15 members, so I wouldn't have done that unless I had thought that we had put down a resolution that is deserving of support, but that will be for each member country to decide.

QUESTION: About North Korea, shortly, your allies, South Korea, Japan, Russia, China are thinking that in the coming days you will negotiate about the Korean Peninsula, most of the countries want to keep the agreed framework, but what is the United States position, what are you going to explain there?

SECRETARY POWELL: I don't know that I would accept your premise that all countries want to keep the agreed framework. One country has said it's nullified, North Korea, and it is an agreement between only two countries, North Korea and the United States. And North Korea says it is nullified, so it is hard to see how that particular framework can remain in place when one person says it's nullified. If it's nullified, it's nullified.

I think what we have heard from our allies in the region that they wish to consult with themselves and with us and there's a great opportunity this weekend since everybody will be here for the APEC conference.

All of them are in touch with North Korea, asking for an explanation. The Japanese have made it clear that normalization can't go forward. There can be no economic aid when we have this kind of behavior, unless this behavior was resolved in some manner, and I think the South Koreans are delivering that message and I know that the Russians have asked for clarification from the North Koreans on this issue and I'm confident that the Chinese are also engaging with the North Koreans.

But this is a time to approach this matter with care, to consult closely with our friends. We are all in this, even though the agreed framework, we're in this together, the agreed framework, is between the United States and North Korea. On that framework other things rest, the light water reactors and other things, and other nations have a significant equity in that arrangement, and that's why we're consulting so closely with them.

Released on October 24, 2002

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(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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