The KCNA (via AP) quoted Kim Jong-il as saying his country might conditionally return to the six-party talks:
“We will go to the negotiating table anytime if there are mature conditions for the six-party talks thanks to the concerted efforts of the parties concerned in the future,” Kim said today, expressing the hope that the United States would show “trustworthy sincerity,” according to the Korean Central News Agency.
KCNA did not elaborate on what conditions Kim cited during his talks with the envoy from China, his only major ally.
Now, I got to do the translation of the statement for the Chosun, and the thing that really struck me was that it seemed, well, rather polite. OK, North Korea??s the last country on the planet that should demand ???trustworthy sincerity?? from its negotiating partners, and a statement indicating Pyongyang might honor us with its presence at the circle-jerk sessions otherwise known as the six-party talks if there are ??mature conditions?? (and God can only guess what those are) would hardly qualify as something over which we should cream our shorts. I??m just saying that Kim??s statement was rather diplomatic and businesslike, devoid of negative references or anything you??d call ??inflammatory.??
Reaction was mixed. U.S. Ambassador to Korea Christopher Hill told Pyongyang to bring its ass back to the table, both Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon and Unification Minister Chung Dong-young tried to put a rosy spin on things while at the same time asking the North to drop the conditions, while the Japanese called on the North to drop talk of conditions and come back to the talks.
