Greek mission to North Korea

Date: 30/01/03

GREECE'S EU presidency was given a mandate this week for sending a top-level mission to North Korea in a bid to break the stalemate over its nuclear weapons ambitions.

George Papandreou, the Greek foreign minister, said on Tuesday (28 January) that the South Korean government had asked the EU to intervene in the crisis sparked by its neighbour's recent decision to withdraw from the international nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

Seoul is among the leading advocates of a diplomatic solution to the row.

Papandreou had earlier been given the go-ahead by his EU counterparts to visit Pyongyang for talks with the regime led by Kim Jong Il.

According to a Greek diplomat, no specific date has been set for the visit. One complicating factor is that Papandreou is focused on trying to maintain unity among the EU-15 over Iraq.

President George W. Bush has promised fresh aid and more cordial relations with Pyongyang if it halts efforts to produce weapons-grade plutonium.

Greece's EU presidency has been given a mandate for sending a top-level mission to North Korea in a bid to break the stalemate over its nuclear weapons ambitions.