While any kind of talks with North Korea are unlikely to accomplish very much, the Bush Administration has long taken the postion – with which I agree – that the North Korean problem is a regional problem and really more the responsibility of North Korea’s neighbor and sometime patron and protector, China. Thus, while Democrats have loudly and frequently demanded unilateral U.S. talks with North Korea, the Bush Administration has held fast to the idea that six-party regional talks are the only way to reach any sensible and workable diplomatic solution.
Patience and persistence have paid off again, however incrementally, this morning: the North Koreans have told China that they are willing to return to the six-party table this month for the first time in a year, news that the Chinese government announced on its website.