미국무성 Assistant Secretary CROWLEY 5월 6일 브리핑

QUESTION: Do you have comment on Kim Jong-il-Hu Jintao meeting in Beijing?

MR. CROWLEY: We – I don’t know that – what particular meetings have taken place. All we would say is that we hope that – assuming a meeting took place – that China made a strong statement to North Korea about its need to meet its obligations and its need to cease provocative actions that are destabilizing in the region.

QUESTION: (Inaudible) know they made a statement? Did I misunderstand that?

MR. CROWLEY: No. I’m saying that I can’t characterize what meetings have taken place in Beijing, but we hope that Beijing delivered a very strong message to Kim Jong-il and – stressing that North Korea has to live up to its international obligations and cease provocative behavior.

QUESTION: There’s some speculation that Kim Jong-il is preparing to announce his willingness to return to the Six-Party Talks. If that were to happen, say today or tomorrow, would the U.S. be prepared to take him up on his offer?

MR. CROWLEY: Look, what North Korea needs to do is to take irreversible steps towards denuclearization. It needs to comply with international law. It needs to cease its belligerent behavior and take action to improve relations with its neighbors. That’s what North Korea should do. As to what speculation, let’s see North Korea take these steps and then we’ll talk.

QUESTION: Wait. Just so we’re clear, and I suspect at the end, when you said “and then we’ll talk,” that was more rhetorical than meant to be taken as literal. But has it not been the position of the Administration that it wants to get North Korea back into Six-Party Talks so that it can resume on the path of denuclearization, which it agreed to in 2005? And therefore, if they were willing to return to talks, they wouldn’t have to do anything first; they’d just have to come back and talk, right? Or would they have to do stuff first?

MR. CROWLEY: Actually, we remain open to meaningful dialogue, but North Korea – for North Korea, actions speak more loudly than words. There are very definite things that North Korea has to do. And as we have always said, before we can talk about meaningful dialogue, North Korea has to accept its international obligations. It has to take meaningful steps towards denuclearization. At that point, there are other possibilities. But right now, we’ll be guided by what North Korea does, not what North Korea says it might be willing to do.

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