Seoul, Jan 29: South Korean President Kim Dae-Jung urged Kim Jong-II "to come clean" on his nuclear ambitions, a matter the North`s leader promised to give "deep consideration," a South Korean envoy said today. Lim Dong-Won, a top adviser to President Kim, returned here earlier in the day after failing to secure a meeting with the North Korean supreme leader, one of the goals of his three-day peace mission to Pyongyang. He carried with him a letter from the outgoing South Korean President that was passed to the North Korean through a third party.
Kim Jong-Il welcomed the "warm-hearted advice" contained in the letter from President Kim and promised to give deep consideration to the South`s recommendations, Lim told reporters. The letter from Kim Dae-Jung, who won the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts for peace on the Korean peninsula, offered "concrete recommendations" for the north to seek ways out of the current standoff, Lim said. He said that the letter urged the North to come clean about its uranium enrichment programme and if it has such a program, it must start the process of resolving the issue by dismantling the program.
Bureau Report