The United States Friday repeated its call on North Korea to improve ties with South Korea before any resumption of the six-party nuclear talks that have been stalled for years over the North's missile and nuclear tests and other provocations.
"We just want to make sure that there's a firm understanding among all of the parties and an expectation that progress can be made," State Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters. "One of our indicators to demonstrate that it will be fruitful to have these kinds of conversations would be a demonstrated seriousness of purpose by North Korea. One way to demonstrate that would be to improve and reduce tensions that currently exist between North and South Korea."
Inter-Korean talks broke down last month as the North balked at Seoul's demand for an apology for last year's provocations, thwarting the reconciliatory mood Pyongyang has established recently to attract food and economic aid through denuclearization-for-aid dialogue.
The multilateral nuclear talks have been deadlocked for more than two years over the North's missile and nuclear tests and attacks on the South Korean warship Cheonan and Yeonpyeong Island that killed 50 people last year.
Seoul and Washington demand Pyongyang apologize for the provocations before moving to the talks, while Beijing wants the multilateral nuclear talks to reopen as soon as possible without any conditions attached.
Speaking on the report that China has invited North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's youngest son, Jong-un, to visit Beijing next month, Crowley said, "North Korean leaders go to China all the time."
The heir apparent is expected to seek economic assistance from China, which has served as the lifeline for the impoverished North as it struggles with U.N. sanctions.
Crowley urged Pyongyang to abide by its denuclearization pledge made under a six-party deal signed in 2005.
"We just simply made clear that we continue to focus on full implementation of U.N. Security Council resolutions," he said. "We want to see North Korea undertake all of its international obligations. We've made clear that in our view of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, that has to take into account the uranium enrichment program. That's the position of the United States, and that's something that we continue to talk to others about."
Robert Einhorn, the State Department's special adviser for nonproliferation and arms control, said in South Korea's capital on Wednesday that Seoul and Washington will seek a U.N. Security Council presidential statement to condemn the North's uranium program before moving on to the six-party talks.
China, North Korea's staunchest communist ally, opposes the Security Council dealing with the uranium program, citing a lack of concrete evidence and its possible adverse impact on an early resumption of the nuclear talks involving the two Koreas, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia.
Pyongyang disclosed in November a uranium enrichment plant that could be used to make nuclear weapons apart from its plutonium program. The North claims its intention is to generate electricity.