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Summary
South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak called for new international talks with North Korea on shutting down its nuclear programme, apparently softening his stance towards the negotiations.(We) have no choice but to resolve the problem of dismantling North Korea's nuclear program diplomatically through the six-party talks, Lee said of the discussions, which began in 2003 and have been stalled for two years. Lee has taken a tough line with the North since its deadly bombardment last month of a South Korean border island, which caused outrage in Seoul.His government, along with the United States and Japan, has been cool in response to efforts by Russia and China to resuscitate the six-party forum in an attempt to ease high tensions. Seoul and its allies say the North must first mend ties with the South and show sincerity about denuclearization. The president said the international community is pressed for time because the North has set 2012 the centenary of the birth of founder Kim Il-Sung as the year to become a great, powerful and prosperous nation.
