POLITICS: US Considers Taking N.Korean Nuke Issue To UN Security Council, page 1

Following yet another withdrawl from 6-party talks by North Korea, this time accompanied by an acknowledgement that they have nuclear weapons, the USA may try a new approach. The United States has so far insisted on the multilateral talks as the answer and has rejected 2 party talks. The UN Security Council has postponed action on North Korea, which was placed on the agenda after that nation withdrew from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The US is now suggesting that with the talks bogged down that it may go to the Security Council seeking sanctions against North Korea.

story.news.yahoo.com
WASHINGTON - Arguing it was burned before in one-on-one talks with North Korea (news - web sites), the United States said Friday it had no interest in resuming direct discussions on Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program.

The White House said it continued to support a six-nation process designed to negotiate the elimination of the communist country's nuclear armaments.

But with that process stalled, administration officials were beginning to discuss the possibility of referring the issue to the U.N. Security Council as an alternate approach.

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Sanctions may be an important component of approaching the North Korea problem. If faced with a halt to all Chinese support and strictly monitored, North Korea finds itself in an untennable position and must negotiate. Nuclear weapons have a "shelf life". Without the proper materials and maintance they deteriorate and ultimately become incapable of detonation after several years. If China won't support North Korea and will help enforce sanctions through monitoring and interdiction, then North Korea will have no choice but to bargain.