Hill, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and statesmen from China, Japan, Russia and South Korea had reached a tentative deal with the one-party state to disable and declare all its nuclear facilities, but the accord fell apart when the North Koreans balked at verifying those actions. "We had kind of a train wreck on our hands," he said. About a month ago, North Korea invited Hill and a small delegation to return, and after three "harrowing and difficult" days, they hammered out an agreement that provided the United States with proof and removed North Korea from a list of states that sponsor terrorism. Next, Hill said the North Koreans have been asked to produce all their plutonium for seizure, and in return, the United States will offer them official recognition, substantial aid and assistance in integrating into the global society. "The hope is that they'll look at all the plutonium they produced and see that it's not worth losing all those things," he said. Christopher R. Hill, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs and former U.S. ambassador to South Korea, served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Cameroon.
Christopher Hill speaks about public service
Diplomat speaks at DU about public service
By RUSS ZIMMER • Advocate Reporter
October 24, 2008
GRANVILLE -- It's amazing how a few weeks can change the prognosis of an international diplomatic effort, the head of American negotiations with North Korea said ahead of a speech Thursday night at Denison University.
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"A month ago when I looked at this, I thought I'd be talking about the failure of the six-party process," Ambassador Christopher Hill half-joked during a meeting with media at Denison's Burton D. Morgan Center.
Later that night, Hill was the featured speaker at the third annual Richard G. Lugar Symposium in Public Policy.
The program is named for Denison graduate and Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., who had a non-speaking role at the event.
As Hill relayed to about 100 people at the school's Swasey Chapel, the international community's attempts to persuade the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to drop its nuclear program had reached yet another impasse this summer.
Hill, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and statesmen from China, Japan, Russia and South Korea had reached a tentative deal with the one-party state to disable and declare all its nuclear facilities, but the accord fell apart when the North Koreans balked at verifying those actions.
"We had kind of a train wreck on our hands," he said.
About a month ago, North Korea invited Hill and a small delegation to return, and after three "harrowing and difficult" days, they hammered out an agreement that provided the United States with proof and removed North Korea from a list of states that sponsor terrorism.
Next, Hill said the North Koreans have been asked to produce all their plutonium for seizure, and in return, the United States will offer them official recognition, substantial aid and assistance in integrating into the global society.
"The hope is that they'll look at all the plutonium they produced and see that it's not worth losing all those things," he said.
Hill said earlier in the day he booked the Denison appearance at the request of Lugar months in advance of the breakthrough with North Korea.
The career diplomat spoke to students about pursuing a profession in public service.
He praised Denison's reputation and prowess in the policy fields and that the students he visited with seemed interested in furthering international relations.
"I think they have a broader interest in how we present ourselves overseas," he said.
Members of the Japanese media were present as well as C-SPAN.
Speakers in the first two years of the symposium were former longtime Georgia Sen. Sam Nunn and Hill's contemporary and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Richard Holbrooke.
Russ Zimmer can be reached at (740) 328-8548 or razimmer@newarkadvocate.com.
