Six-party Talks - Content of The Six-party Talks

Content of The Six-party Talks

The main points of contention are:

• Security guarantee - this issue has been raised by North Korea since the Bush administration (2001–2009) took office. North Korea labeled the Bush administration as hostile and accused it of planning to overthrow the North Korean government by force. This concern was elevated when President George W. Bush named North Korea as part of an "axis of evil" in his 2002 State of the Union Address.
• The construction of light water reactors - under the 1994 Agreed Framework two light-water reactors would be built in return for the closure of North Korea's graphite-moderated nuclear power plant program at Yongbyon. This agreement broke down after both sides defaulted, especially since 2002.
• Peaceful use of nuclear energy - whilst the NPT allows states the right to use nuclear energy for civilian purposes, this is thought to have been used by North Korea as a cover for their nuclear weapons program.
• Diplomatic relations - North Korea wants normalization of diplomatic relations as part of the bargain for giving up its nuclear weapons program. The U.S. has at times disagreed and at times agreed to this condition, providing North Korea irreversibly and verifiably disarms its nuclear weapons program.
• Financial restrictions / Trade normalization - The U.S. has placed heavy financial sanctions on North Korea for what they see as an uncooperative attitude and unwillingness to dismantle its nuclear weapons program. In addition, other parties such as China have taken actions such as the freezing of North Korean assets in foreign bank accounts, such as the US$24 million in Macau's Banco Delta Asia. With the nuclear test on October 9, 2006, UNSCR 1718 was passed, which included a ban on all luxury goods to North Korea. These funds have since been unfrozen by the US on March 19, 2007 to reciprocate actions by their North Korean counterparts. The United States removed North Korea from its list of state sponsors of terrorism in Oct 2008.
• Verifiable and Irreversible disarmament - Members of the six-party talks have disagreed on this. Japan and the U.S. have demanded that North Korea completely dismantle its nuclear program so that it may never be restarted, and that it can be verified by the six members of the talks before aid is given. South Korea, China and Russia have agreed on a milder, step-by-step solution which involves the members of the six-party talks giving a certain reward (e.g. aid) in return for each step of nuclear disarmament. North Korea has wanted the U.S. to concede some of the conditions first before it will take any action in disarming their weapons program, which they see as the only guarantee to prevent a U.S. attack on their soil.