(LEAD) N. Korea high on agenda at ASEAN Regional Forum

(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with draft of chairman's statement, other details)
By Lee Chi-dong
PHUKET, Thailand, July 23 (Yonhap) -- Asia-Pacific nations' top diplomats were
set to address North Korean intransigence and other stability-related issues here
Thursday as the region's largest annual security forum got underway.
South Korea and its allies were expected to push for a strong condemnation of
Pyongyang's recent provocations in the ASEAN Regional Forum's (ARF) final
statement. They would like to see wording that supports a U.N. resolution that
slapped strict financial and arms sanctions on the communist state for its
recent nuclear test.
Also on the agenda for the ARF, hosted by the 10-member Association of Southeast
Asian Nations on this Thai resort island, were discussions on Myanmar's abysmal
human rights record and counter-terrorism coordination.
"The Ministers recognized that the Asia-Pacific region continues to face
multi-dimensional threats and challenges and that the ARF therefore needs to
continue to revitalize itself in order to maintain its relevance and primacy in
promoting regional peace and stability and in helping to shape the evolving
regional security architecture," read a draft of the chairman's statement issued
by Thailand and obtained by Yonhap News Agency.
With regard to the Korean Peninsula, the draft only said the topic is "awaiting
discussion" at the session, indicating there may be some debate on how to
approach the issue.
Pyongyang's delegation to the ARF, led by Pak Kun-gwang, a vice foreign
minister-level ambassador, is expected to try and water down or remove references
to North Korea in the statement.
"Thailand will circulate a revised draft to reflect the results of today's ARF
sessions in the morning and afternoon before actually adopting a statement at the
end of the meeting," a diplomatic source said.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who is also attending the forum,
reiterated an earlier call for the North to change its course during the morning
session.
"Our approach isolates North Korea, imposes meaningful pressure to force changes
in its behavior, and provides an alternative path that would serve everyone's
interests," she was quoted as saying.
On Wednesday, she publicly offered an olive branch to the North while at the same
time delivering a warning.
"We have made it very clear to the North Koreans that if they will agree to
irreversible denuclearization, the United States, as well as our partners, will
move forward on a package of incentives and opportunities including normalizing
relations," she said at a press conference.
She had just held a serious of meetings with her counterparts from South Korea,
China, Russia and Japan, all members of the six-party talks aimed at dismantling
North Korea's nuclear arsenal.
If North Korea continues its belligerence, she added, it will face increasing
international isolation and greater sanctions.
The 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are Brunei,
Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand and Vietnam.
Their dialogue partners are Australia, Canada, China, Japan, South Korea, India,
the European Union, New Zealand, the U.S. and Russia.
The ARF is also joined by North Korea, Mongolia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka,
East Timor and Papua New Guinea.
lcd@yna.co.kr
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