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'Japan obstacle to peace'

By P. S. Suryanarayana

SINGAPORE Oct. 7. North Korea today disputed the credentials of Japan to participate in multilateral talks on its suspected nuclear weapons programme. The DPRK, the U.S., Japan, S. Korea, Russia and China took part in the talks held in Beijing in August. Efforts are on for a fresh round.

The North Korean news agency said: "Japan is nothing but an obstacle to the peaceful settlement of the nuclear issue between the DPRK and the U.S. It (Japan) has lost its qualification to be a trustworthy dialogue partner.'' It said the DPRK would not allow Japan to participate in any form of negotiations.

The primary cause of the DPRK's salvo is seen to be Tokyo's stand that the Cold-War-era abductions of some Japanese by North Korea should be addressed as part of an overall settlement of the issues concerning Pyongyang, according to analysts. Pyongyang's stand has more to do with the round of talks that the Japanese Prime Minister, Junichiro Koizumi, held with his Chinese counterpart, Wen Jiabao, and the South Korean President, Roh Moo-hyun, in Bali today.

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