Money Matters

The development of the "Super Notes" scandal has continued to develop as the countries involved in the Six-party talks try to mend fences enough to get all sides back to the table. It seems that even North Korea is sensing the resolve of the US to stick to their guns on sanctions and have hinted that they might be willing to stop committing international crimes.

Hill said the North Koreans "indicated they would be prepared to subscribe to international norms with respect to money laundering and would want to cooperate internationally on these issues."
Hill, who has tried to convince Pyongyang the crackdown is a law enforcement matter unrelated to the six-party talks, refused to provide more details or say if the North's comments were a hopeful sign. We're not looking here for words. We're more interested in actions. We'd like to see this (illicit) activity cease," he said.

This admission is timely as the US is not only failing to back down (causing much official whinning in Cheong Wa Dae) but they are also ready to racthet up the pressure on the NK economy.

On top of this, there have been the recent admissions on the parts of Japan, China, and (albeit vaguely) S. Korea that the problem is substantial. Japan is even bringing the issue to the table in their upcoming bilateral talks in Beijing. I feel this could be a crucial turning point if the interantional community can see that drawing the line can actually work. This may change the way the International community (not including the Roh administration) addresses issues in N. Korea.