Us Department of State Case No M-2014-07825 Doc No 017784931 Date 05 09 2019 esscamnr Date Printed CHANNEL n a Declass12 3112044 13 Aug 2003 1994STATE256743 HANDLING NODIS 12 PAGE 01 STATE 256743 2200052 ORIGIN INFO LOG-00 ADS-00 DRAFTED BY APPROVED BY 74FADO 220006Z 39 2200052 SEP 94 ZFF6 WASHDC TO AMEMBASSY MOSCOW IMMEDIATE INFO AMEMBASSY SEOUL PRIORITY AMEMBASSY BEIJING AMEMBASSY TOKYO BONN AMEMBASSY PART 3 AMEMBASSY LONDON STATE 256743 NODIS E O 12356 DECL OADR TAGS PREL KNNP KN RS US SUBJECT BRIEFING THE RUSSIANS ON DISCUSSIONS 1 SECRET ENTIRE TEXT SESRET PAGE 02 STATE 256743 2200053 2 AMBASSADOR AT-LARGE ROBERT L GALLUCCI CALLED IN RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR YULIY VORONTSOV SEPTEMBER 20 TO BRIEF VORONTSOV ON THE STATUS OF OUR EFFORTS TO RESOLVE THE NORTH KOREA NUCLEAR PROBLEM VORONTSOV WAS ACCOMPANIED BY RUSSIAN EMBASSY ASIA-WATCHER VLADIMIR RAKHMANIN U S PARTICIPANTS INCLUDED JOEL WIT JEFE GOLDSTEIN AND KEN FORDER NOTETAKER Page - REVIEW AUTHORITY Marvin Russell Senior Reviewer UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No M-2014-07825 Doc No 017784931 Date 05 09 2019 Cl 7 7 8 4 93 U S Department of State Case No M-2014-07825 Doc No 017784931 Date 05 09 2019 seem -Date Printed CHANNEL n a 1 l3 Aug 2003 HANDLING NODIS 3 GALLUCCI BEGAN THE SESSION BY STRESSING HIS DESIRE TO KEEP THE RUSSIANS FULLY INFORMED OF OUR EFFORTS TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE HE THEN GAVE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF HIS EFFORTS TO DATE HIGHLIGHTING EARLIER ROUNDS IN GENEVA AS WELL AS HIS RECENT TRIPS TO THE FAR EAST AND RUSSIA GALLUCCI NOTED THAT NORTH KOREA HAD INITIALLY REQUESTED RUSSIAN LIGHT WATER REACTORS BUT THAT THIS HAD PROVEN IMPOSSIBLE DUE TO LACK OF FINANCING ONLY SOUTH KOREAN REACTORS FINANCED LARGELY BY SEOUL WITH SOME HELP FROM TOKYO PASSED THE TEST NAMELY THAT ANY LIGHT WATER REACTOR PACKAGE HAD TO BE POLITICALLY TECHNICALLY AND FINANCIALLY VIABLE GALLUCCI EXPLAINED THAT HIS LATEST ASIA SWING WAS DESIGNED TO NAIL DOWN SUPPORT FOR THE SOUTH KOREAN OPTION 4 GALLUCCI SAID THE TASK AT HAND WAS TO CONVINCE THE DPRK THAT THERE WAS NO ALTERNATIVE TO SOUTH KOREAN REACTORS THE NORTH KOREANS HE EXPLAINED WERE SUSPICIOUS THAT SOUTH KOREA COULD MANIPULATE SUCH A SOLUTION TO GAIN POLITICAL LEVERAGE WE CONCEIVED THE IDEA OF MANAGING REACTOR DELIVERY THROUGH A U S -LED INTERNATIONAL CONSORTIUM IN PART TO MITIGATE SUCH CONCERNS THE CONSORTIUM KEDO SEERET SECRET PAGE 03 256743 220005Z COULD SERVE TO INSULATE THE NORTH FROM THE SOUTH AND HELP KEEP POLITICS OUT OF THE ISSUE HIGHLIGHTING RECENT REPORTS OF MINATOM EFFORTS TO PUSH FOR RUSSIAN REACTORS WELL AS EFFORTS BY OTHER WESTERN COMPANIES TO MARKET THEIR WARES GALLUCCI NOTED THAT WE ARE REQUESTING THAT GOVERNMENTS DISCOURAGE THEIR COMPANIES FROM SUGGESTING TO THE DPRK THAT OTHER REACTOR SOURCES COULD PROVE FEASIBLE 5 GALLUCCI NOTED THAT AFTER THE LAST MEETING IN GENEVA HE HAD FELT THAT THE GROUND HAD BEEN LAID FOR AN EVENTUAL SETTLEMENT HE CAUTIONED HOWEVER THAT THE RECENT EXPERTS MEETING IN BERLIN WAS A STEP BACKWARD THE NORTH KOREAN DELEGATION WAS LED BY A VICE ECONOMICS MINISTER WHO PROVED PARTICULARLY UNCOOPERATIVE THE DPRK DELEGATION HAD REJECTED SOUTH KOREAN REACTORS AND HAD ADDED NEW DEMANDS INCLUDING COMPENSATION FOR LOST INVESTMENT IN NUCLEAR GALLUCCI SAID HE PLANNED TO IGNORE BERLIN AND TRY TO PICK UP WHERE HE LEFT OFF WITH VICE MINISTER KANG AFTER THE CLOSE OF THE LAST GENEVA ROUND HE CAUTIONED HOWEVER THAT FOUR KEY ISSUES REMAINED UNRESOLVED REACTOR Page 2 UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case No M-2014-07825 Doc No 017784931 Date 05 09 2019 Department of State Case NO M-2014-07825 Doc No 017784931 Date 05 09 2019 Date Printed CHANNEL n a 1 13-Augd2003 1994STATE256743 HANDLING NODIS ARCHITECTURE 2 DISPOSITION OF THE SPENT FUEL FROM THE 5 MW 3 REACTOR AND 4 SPECIAL INSPECTIONS 25X6 7 GALLUCCI SAID THAT IF WE MAKE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS TOWARD A SOLUTION AT THE NEXT GENEVA SESSION THE U S MIGHT CALL A MEETING IN WASHINGTON OF GOVERNMENTS THAT COULD PARTICIPATE IN KEDO RUSSIA WOULD NATURALLY BE INVITED GALLUCCI SAID RUSSIA COULD POSSIBLY WIN REPROCESSING CONTRACTS IF NORTH KOREA AGREED TO EXPORT THE SPENT FUEL IN THE YONGBYON COOLING PONDS AND ENRICHMENT SERVICES CONTRACTS ONCE THE LIGHT WATER REACTORS COME ON LINE 8 VORONTSOV EXPECTED THAT THE REACTOR SOURCE WOULD POSE THE MOST SERIOUS PROBLEM HE DOUBTED THAT NORTH KOREA WOULD ACCEPT SOUTH KOREAN REACTORS NOTING THAT PYONGYANG WOULD VIEW ROK REACTORS AS AN UNACCEPTABLE OF GALLUCCI RESPONDED THAT WE HAD CONCEIVED THE KEDO CONSORTIUM IDEA IN PART TO HELP THE DPRK SWALLOW ROK REACTORS HE AGREED WITH VORONTSOV THAT SOUTH KOREA WOULD HAVE TO COOPERATE IN EFFORTS TO MAKE ROK REACTORS MORE PALATABLE To PYONGYANG 9 IN RESPONSE TO A QUESTION FROM VORONTSOV GALLUCCI SAID THE PYONGYANG EXPERTS MEETING HAD GONE WELL BUT THAT THE U S WOULD ONLY AGREE TO ESTABLISH A LIAISON OFFICE IN THE DPRK AS PART OF AN OVERALL SETTLEMENT OF THE NUCLEAR PROBLEM VORONTSOV NOTED THAT THIS WAS A GOOD BARGAINING CHIP 10 GALLUCCI ASKED ABOUT RUSSIAN DFM TRIP TO THE Page - 3 I U S Department of State Case No Doc No 017784931 Date 05 09 2019 C1 7 7 8 4 US Department of State Case No M-2014-07825 Doc No 017784931 Date 05 09 2019 4 1 Date Printed CHANNEL n a 1 13 Aug-2003 HANDLING NODIS PAGE 05' STATE 256743 2200053 DPRK VORONTSOV SAID PANOV WOULD BE IN NORTH KOREA UNTIL SEPTEMBER 25 AND THAT THE PRIMARY REASON FOR HIS TRAVEL WAS TO DISCUSS BILATERAL KOREAN TIES ESPECIALLY TRADE LINKS VORONTSOV NOTED HOWEVER THAT THE NUCLEAR INEVITABLY ARISE AND THAT MOSCOW WOULD ENSURE THAT GALLUCCI IS BRIEFED ON TRIP VIA THE RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR IN GENEVA ll VORONTSOV CLOSED THE MEETING BY WISHING HE SAID GALLUCCI HAD 2 25X6 Page 4 UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case No Doc No 017784931 Date 05 09 2019 This document is from the holdings of The National Security Archive Suite 701 Gelman Library The George Washington University 2130 H Street NW Washington D C 20037 Phone 202 994-7000 Fax 202 994-7005 nsarchiv@gwu edu