Diplomacy may still work: Hill

A US envoy said yesterday that diplomacy could still resolve the standoff over North Korea's missile tests as China and Russia stood firm against a push at the UN to impose sanctions.

Japan, however, refused to back down in its Western-backed draft resolution to punish Pyong-yang, although it also clarified earlier statements of a theoretical pre-emptive strike that set off fury in both North and South Korea.

South Korea, which opposes strong reprisals against the North, hoped to use diplomacy to resolve the crisis, warning a high-level visiting delegation from the North against firing more missiles.

Christopher Hill, the top US envoy on North Korea, was back in Beijing on a regional tour, hoping to hear from Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing (李肇星) on a Chinese delegation's ongoing talks with Pyongyang's reclusive leadership.

When asked by reporters if time was running out to settle the crisis through negotiations, Hill said: "No, I wouldn't use that. Obviously, we are going to evaluate every day how we are [doing] on the diplomacy."

"The DPRK [Democratic Peo-ple's Republic of Korea] is in a historic moment," Hill said. "They must decide further isolation or to join the rest of the world. Yet they cannot decide what to do with this historic moment."

North Korea on July 5 test-fired seven missiles, including a new Taepodong-2, which was said to be able to hit Alaska or Hawaii but quickly crashed into the Sea of Japan.

The North Koreans walked out of six-nation talks in November that aimed to end its nuclear program and ease concern over its missiles.

Hill refused to cede to the North's demands for re-entering talks -- lifting US financial sanctions on a bank in Macau alleged to launder and counterfeit money for the impoverished regime.

"How much money laundering would you suggest we allow? A small amount, a medium amount?" Hill said.

North Korea's last long-range tested missile flew over Japan into the Pacific Ocean in 1998, leading Tokyo to step up work on a missile shield with the US.

China and Russia do not share Japan's security concerns.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said yesterday that the Japanese draft resolution, which is backed by the US and European powers, "contains unacceptable points."

French Ambassador Jean-Marc de La Sabliere, the president of the UN Security Council this month, hinted that China had threatened to veto the draft. He suggested the body might want to first adopt a weaker Chinese text before tackling the Japanese resolution.

China has proposed a presidential statement, which carries no legal force. The French envoy said the wording needed to be "stronger" to be acceptable to all members.

Japan refused to budge on a binding resolution.

"There is no change to our stance to push for the passage of the resolution," said Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe.

Abe clarified his statement earlier this week on a theoretical pre-emptive attack on the North. He said he was talking only of a hypothetical scenario under which Japan, which is officially pacifist, were under attack.