Pyongyang tells IMO that maritime blockade was threatening ‘free navigation of container ships’; US Envoy Bosworth to visit Pyongyang on December 8; Kim: Ties with China “unbreakable”;
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    • At the meeting of the International Maritime Organisation in London on November 27, North Korea charged that maritime blockade by ‘certain’ countries was threatening ‘free navigation of container ships that have peaceful purpose ….’ Reports noted that the North Korean argument was a complaint against the monitoring of the Kang Nam I in July 2009, which was forced to turn back after being suspected of carrying illicit weapons to Myanmar.1

    US special envoy on North Korea Stephen Bosworth is scheduled to fly to Pyongyang on December 8 on a mission to persuade Pyongyang to return to the six-party talks. The meeting will be the first direct contact with the DPRK regime by the Obama administration.2

    North Korean leader Kim Jong-il met with the visiting Chinese defense minister Liang Guanglie and asserted that the relations between the two countries were “unbreakable.” Liang on his part told his North Korean counterpart Kim Yong-chun that ties with Pyongyang were "sealed in blood" when Chinese troops fought the 1950-1953 Korean War on the side of the North Koreans.3

    In other developments, North Korea and Russia signed a ‘protocol’ to cooperate in the field of science through the end of 2011 at the Siberian city of Novosibirsk.4

    South Korean President Lee Myung-bak meanwhile stated that he was ready to hold a summit meeting with Kim Jong-il "anytime and anywhere" if it would help resolve the nuclear question and the issue of South Korean citizens abducted by DPRK.5 On Afghanistan, Lee stated that his government planned to dispatch hundreds of civilian aid workers and security personnel as part of efforts to meet Seoul’s growing international obligations.6

    Egypt’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmed Fathalla and his South Korean counterpart Lee Yong-joon discussed ways to enhance cooperation in renewable and nuclear energy, defense and tourism, among other areas.7

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