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DE RUEHLO #2680/01 3361548
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P 021548Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY LONDON
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C O N F I D E N T I A L LONDON 002680 
 
SIPDIS 
NOFORN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/02/2019 
TAGS: PREL PINR PGOV ECON SOCI KN CH KS FR UK
SUBJECT: DPRK: AMB BOSWORTH'S DEC 2 MEETINGS WITH UK 
FOREIGN OFFICE OFFICIALS 
 
Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Greg Berry, reasons 1.4 (b/ d).  

¶1. (C/NF) Summary.  Foreign Office junior minister Ivan Lewis and Asia Pacific Director Scott Wightman told Special Representative for North Korea Policy Ambassador Stephen Bosworth in separate December 2 meetings that the UK and EU want to support the USG's efforts to see North Korea return to multilateral discussions.  Wightman, who had just returned from a week long trip to Seoul and Pyongyang, said the EU is internally trying to think of areas where it could increase its dialogue with North Korea at the appropriate time.  He noted that the EU Heads of Missions in Pyongyang assess that it is not the right time yet and agreed that it was necessary to maintain sanctions and push for implementation of the related UN Security Council Resolutions.  Wightman outlined the UK's direct interests related to North Korea, including economic interests, the UK's role on the UNSR, the nuclear nonproliferation agenda, and possible links to Burma, and welcomed the opportunity to continue exchanging views and to support politically the USG's efforts.  End summary.  

¶2. (C/NF) Special Representative for North Korea Policy Ambassador Stephen Bosworth met separately with Foreign Office junior minister Ivan Lewis and Asia Pacific Director Scott Wightman on December 2 in London.  

Lewis: The EU Wants to Support the USG's Efforts --------------------------------------------- ---  

¶3. (C/NF) After hearing Ambassador Bosworth's update on the current situation, Lewis said the EU wants to support the USG's efforts as much as possible.  He took on board that if North Korea returns to multilateral talks, the EU could potentially play a helpful role by increasing its contact with the DPRK.  Lewis suggested Ambassador Bosworth engage Baroness Ashton, the EU's new High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, after Bosworth's visit to Pyongyang and other capitals in the region.  

Wightman: UK and EU Support at the Right Time ---------------------------------------------  

¶4. (C/NF) Following his week long visit to Pyongyang and Seoul last week, Wightman said the UK wants to support the USG's efforts and noted the UK's direct interests with North Korea, which include economic interests, the UK's role on the UNSR, the nuclear nonproliferation agenda, and possible links to Burma.  Wightman said the EU is internally assessing what the EU could do to increase its dialogue with North Korea when the appropriate time comes, quickly noting that the EU Heads of Missions in Pyongyang assess that at present it is not the right time and that it is important to maintain sanctions and push for implementation of the various UN Security Council Resolutions.  Wightman said the EU "wants to do whatever it can to help without simply being presented with a check to sign."  Agreeing that increased engagement should come only after the DPRK's agreement to return to multilateral talks, Wightman said some potential areas of cooperation include agriculture, forestry, low-carbon economic growth and development, and increased humanitarian assistance.  Wightman said the UK was working in the EU to make sure that the wrong messages were not being sent to the DPRK, which he intimated French Special Envoy Jack Lang's appointment and visit may have done.  He agreed that sanctions, of which the DPRK is beginning to feel the crunch, should be maintained until demonstrative progress has been made through multilateral discussions.  

¶5. (C/NF) Wightman mentioned that he has a regular dialogue with the North Korean Ambassador in London.  He also noted that the North Korean Embassy's bank had closed its account and the Embassy had had trouble finding another bank to accept its business, which he presumed was a commercial decision made due to the resources required to oversee the account.  He offered that UK Prime Minister Brown is happy to carry helpful messages to leaders in the region, noting that Brown had discussed North Korea with his Japanese counterpart on several occasions.   Visit London's Classified Website: XXXXXXXXXXXX 
Susman