MEPS meet North Koreans 14 times for secret talks

‘The nuclear bomb programme will only lead to an inevitable, unthinkable conclusion’

A EUROPEAN Parliament delegation said yesterday it had been conducting secret talks with North Korea over the last three years to try to persuade Pyongyang to negotiate an end to its nuclear programme.

The group led by Nirj Deva, a British MEP, has met senior North Korean officials, including ministers, 14 times and plans another meeting in Brussels in the near future. It comes as Shinzo Abe, Japan’s prime minister, is considering a meeting with Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader in an apparent change of strategy in dealing with Pyongyang.

Reports of a potential dialogue between Tokyo and Pyongyang mark the latest in a series of fast-paced diplomatic developments, with North Korea and the US recently announcing plans to hold a summit.

The MEPS said they held regular clandestine meetings with the North Koreans in Brussels, Mr Deva said, listening to their concerns and trying to convince them of the risks of nuclear war.

“We told them in no uncertain terms that if they carry on with the missile programme and the nuclear bomb programme they will only lead to an inevitable conclusion which is unthinkable,” Mr Deva, the Conservative MEP for South East England, said.

Mr Deva said his delegation had a role to play in developing “confidence building measures” to support the Us north Korea dialogue.