S. Korea Proposes U.S. Give North a ‘Package Deal’

SEOUL — The United States could offer economic and diplomatic benefits to North Korea for access to a suspected North Korean nuclear weapons site, South Korean President Kim Dae Jung proposed Monday.

Kim made the proposal during a meeting with William J. Perry, the newly appointed U.S. government policy coordinator on North Korea. The former U.S. defense minister arrived Sunday on a three-nation Asia tour, which includes stops in Tokyo and Beijing.

“I think all problems related to North Korea should be tackled in a package deal,” a spokesman quoted Kim as telling Perry.

Tension is mounting over North Korea’s refusal to accept a U.S. demand for inspection of the suspected underground nuclear facility under construction. Northern military leaders have accused the U.S. of looking for a pretext to ignite a war in the peninsula and warned that they will strike Japan and any other country that helps U.S. forces.