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China, South Korea, Japan, welcome North Korea’s nuclear freeze deal

China backs US-N. Korea nuclear freeze deal, Google News, By Simon Martin (AFP) –1 March 12 SEOUL — China Thursday welcomed North Korea’s agreement to freeze nuclear activities in return for massive US food aid, a deal that raised cautious hopes of eased tensions under Pyongyang’s new young leader.

South Korea and Japan also hailed Pyongyang’s commitment to suspend its uranium enrichment programme along with nuclear and long-range missile tests, and to let UN nuclear inspectors monitor the deal. The announcement follows the death in December of longtime leader Kim Jong-Il and the transition to his untested son Jong-Un.

The deal could boost the son’s prestige in the run-up to a major celebration next month, marking 100 years since the birth of the Kim dynasty’s late founding leader Kim Il-Sung.
The breakthrough followed US-North Korean talks in Beijing last week,
the first under the new regime.
China, the North’s sole major ally and economic prop, welcomed the warmer relations between North Korea and its longtime foe the United States. “China is willing to work with relevant parties to continue to push forward the six-party talks process, and play a constructive role to realise long-term peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and
northeast Asia,” said foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei.

The six-nation nuclear disarmament talks have been stalled for some three years. But the two Koreas, Japan, China, Russia and the United States have been talking for months about ways to revive them…..
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jKKHWf-qQHojxMIQehsl0CPJaV6Q?docId=CNG.2c225bad7647d7052c9c04aa3cf15915.251

March 2, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | North Korea, politics international