Secret talks between U.S. and North Korea

American military planes carried Americans officials and equipment to the Asian country. Officials spoke about the country’s affairs post Kim Jong Il’s death.

By YOSHIHIRO MAKINO | ASAHI SHIMBUN | FEBRUARY 20, 2013

Senior U.S. administration officials held secret talks in North Korea on at least three occasions in 2011 and 2012, The Asahi Shimbun has learned.

Although the visits had potential implications for Japan, Washington did not inform its security partner at the time and only informally confirmed one of them when the Japanese side pressed, government and other sources in Japan, South Korea and the United States said.

The U.S. State Department even warned the Foreign Ministry against making further inquiries, saying they would harm bilateral relations, the sources said.

U.S. military planes flew from an air base in Guam to Pyongyang and back on April 7, 2012, and again on a longer visit lasting from Aug. 18-20, the sources said.

It is believed that those aboard included Sydney Seiler, director for Korea at the U.S. National Security Council, and Joseph DeTrani, who headed the North Korea desk at the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence. DeTrani left the post in May.

They met with North Korean officials and discussed policies following the death of leader Kim Jong Il in December 2011.

The North Korean delegation included Jang Song Thaek, vice chairman of the National Defense Commission and husband of Kim Jong Il’s sister. Jang is widely considered to serve as a mentor for Kim Jong Un, who succeeded his father as his nation’s leader.

The Japanese government only learned about the flights after receiving reports from hobbyists monitoring activity at military bases and also analyzing air traffic flight plans.

When the Japanese side submitted an official inquiry, U.S. officials expressed frustration that the request had been made, citing the subject’s confidential nature. The State Department warned Japan against inquiring further, saying Washington-Tokyo ties could be damaged.

The third visit that The Asahi Shimbun has confirmed is one that took place in November 2011. Sources said at least one military aircraft from the Guam air base loaded heavy equipment, including bulldozers, at Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo and flew to Pyongyang.

It is believed that the delegation included officials from the U.S. Pacific Command. They met with North Korean officials and discussed efforts to recover the remains of U.S. soldiers killed during the 1950-53 Korean War, the sources said.

When Japan inquired about this visit, U.S. officials unofficially confirmed that it had taken place, the sources said.

Please check a related article at (http://ajw.asahi.com/article/asia/korean_peninsula/AJ201302150084).

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U.S. military begins evacuations of families in Japan

Examiner
March 17, 2011

As officials struggle to contain leaking radiation from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan, the US military has begun to evacuate families from the disaster-stricken island. Efforts to cool the reactors have seen little success since last Friday’s earthquake and tsunami and concerns are growing of a nuclear disaster in the offing.

The Department of Defense announced this morning that the State Department was planning voluntary evacuations of military families and the families of government employees from Japan. It further will work to evacuate civilians that live within a 50 mile radius of the Fukushima plant. The power facility sustained significant damage in the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan last Friday.

• In pictures – U.S. military answers call to provide earthquake and tsunami relief in Japan

The Navy has moved quickly to start the process at Naval Air Facility Atsugi and Yokuska Naval Base. Those facilities are approximately 200 miles south of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant.

Following suit, the Air Force announced similar measures at Misawa Air Base and the Army began evacuations at a facility near Tokyo. The Marine Corps has not announced any evacuations at their facilities at this time.

Other military facilities in Japan are expected to announce the evacuations to service members and their families today. Underlying the growing danger of a nuclear catastrophe, the State Department warned of “the deteriorating situation at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.”

Col. Otto Feather, 374th Airlift Wing commander at Yokota Air Base, told his command in a radio address, “I know there are a lot of people trying to figure out how to get out of here, and I’m not surprised that there are people that want to get on the road.”

Feather provided a strong statement saying that the US military remained focused on continuing relief efforts in Japan. “The rest of us are going to be lockstep here with the Japanese, doing everything we can to take care of the recovery from this terrible tsunami and earthquake,” he said.

The Department of Defense did not provide numbers as to how many people could potentially be evacuated. However the US military has a heavy presence in Japan with tens of thousands of family members and civilian employees.

Experts generally agree that the radioactive plume from the reactors will move over the Pacific Ocean. Earlier this week the Navy said some of its aircrew that had flown through the plume had become contaminated.

A larger scale event that might include an explosion is possible and causing concern across the globe. White House spokesman Jay Carney said, “The situation has deteriorated in the days since the tsunami and earthquake. The situation has grown at times worse with potential greater damage and fallout from the reactor.”