DPRK: AMBASSADOR INFORMS GOR ABOUT RESOLUTION OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L MOSCOW 001635

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

TREASURY FOR JAMES WILKINSON

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/11/2017
TAGS: PREL PARM MNUC KNNP KN RS
SUBJECT: DPRK: AMBASSADOR INFORMS GOR ABOUT RESOLUTION OF
BDA DISPUTE

Classified By: Ambassador William J. Burns. Reasons 1,4 (B/D)


1. (C) On April 10, the Ambassador alerted DFM Losyukov to
the resolution of the Banco Delta Asia (BDA) dispute and
urged the GOR to publicly welcome the breakthrough and to
push North Korea to fulfill its February 13 obligations.
Losyukov said he understood the significance of the message,
welcomed Macao's action and would follow up. (Note:
Losyukov is departing Moscow on a swing through Asia and will
return April 23.)


2. (C) Oleg Davydov, a Senior Advisor to DFM Losyukov and
participant of the Six-Party Talks, told us April 11 that the
GOR was treating official statements regarding the resolution
of the dispute with caution, given the DPRK's
unpredictability. However, he underlined that a conclusive
resolution would "add a political impulse to the process and
open many new doors." Davydov asked that the GOR be provided
with a U.S. readout about the resolution. He also requested
that the dates for the next round be notified early enough to
give other parties time to prepare; normally, the GOR would
like to have at least one week for a regular round of the
talks. The ministerial meeting, which Russia supported,
required even more preparation to avoid it becoming an empty
"propaganda" meeting, he added. Davydov emphasized that the
GOR saw a true partnership with the U.S. in the Six-Party
Talks and hoped that the U.S. kept the Russian team in the
loop.


3. (C) Comment and Action Request: Moscow is eager to see
the Six Party Talks restart and will weigh in with Pyongyang
to encourage the DPRK to fulfill its obligations. Sharing
information with the GOR about the resolution of the BDA
dispute will aid in this process.
BURNS