According to the president of the UN General Assembly (and foreign minister of Gabon), North Korea just wants to get along with everyone else, as always. If only we non-hermit states were more willing to cooperate:

North Korea gave a visiting U.N. official a “very positive message” about resuming stalled six-way talks on its nuclear programs, the South Korean Unification Ministry said Wednesday.



It also quoted Jean Ping, who is president of the U.N. General Assembly, as saying in a meeting with Unification Minister Chung Dong-young that North Korea asked him to tell Washington it wanted to co-exist with the United States.



Ping, who is Gabon’s foreign minister, visited Pyongyang and Beijing before coming to Seoul.



“Ping said during the meeting he received a very positive message from North Korea about reopening the six-party talks during his visit to the North,” the ministry said.



“North Korea asked him to convey to the United States that it wanted ‘coexistence’, and he said he plans to convey the message,” the ministry added.

Well, that’s all right, then. If the DPRK told the UN (which told the ROK) to tell the US that it wants to “coexist” with us, why let a half-century history of reneging on agreements be a stumbling block? Mustn’t be uptight, or anything.



Of course, I say that, but in reality, continuing to negotiate is pretty much our only viable option. Invading North Korea (BTW, when did it become the fashion to call the DPRK “the Norks” or [hurl!]”NoKo”? Eight years in Japan has worn down my objections to cute-isms somewhat, but I still have my limits) would be a scintillatingly stupid idea, as would flatly refusing to acknowledge the Pyongyang regime’s sovereignty, at least for the time being. Coolly treading a fine line between not indulging the DPRK and not arousing its unpredictable wrath is probably the best we can do right now, but it does get grating the way we all have to pretend to be so very pleased whenever the North Koreans make a diplomatic overture that mimes goodwill and good faith.



24 November 04:08 EST

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