The Washington Post is reporting on how confused the current US government’s position on North Korea which has led to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton  this week to pretty much ignore the North Korea issue:

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has apparently decided on a different North Korea policy from the one she planned three months ago. At a hearing by the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, Clinton clarified the administration’s position on stabilization efforts in Afghanistan, Taliban expansion in Pakistan, Middle East issues, and Iran’s nuclear development program. But she said nothing about North Korea, nor did she mention the six-party nuclear talks.  [Chosun Ilbo]

The Korea Times would later quote her as saying the US wants to continue to pursue six party talks with North Korea:

The U.S. has made it clear it is prepared to resume the negotiations, also involving China, Russia, Japan and South Korea, Clinton told the House Foreign Affairs Committee in Washington Wednesday.

“The North Koreans have not demonstrated any willingness to resume the six-party process,” Clinton was quoted as saying. “I think we have to be strong, patient, persistent and not give in to the kind of back-and-forth, the unpredictable behavior of the North Korean regime.”  [Korea Times]

While the US administration continues to ignore and tell North Korea to rejoin the Six Party Talks the North Koreans are pulling out one of their cards they still have which is to flaunt the two captured US journalists they have to get the US’s attention:

North Korea said on Friday that the two U.S. journalists arrested last month on its border with China would be put on trial to face criminal charges.

“Our related agency has decided to turn the U.S. reporters over for trial based on findings of their crimes,” the North’s KCNA news agency reported, without giving further details.

The planned trial comes as the reclusive state faces international censure for its launch early this month of a long-range rocket.  [Reuters]

These two journalists actually do not have as much value as North Korea probably thinks considering how the US media has pretty much ignored their capture.  Could you imagine the media coverage if two Americans were taken hostage in Somalia due to a pirate hijacking compared to the coverage the two journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee are currently receiving?

Anyway Tom Coyner writes in the Korea Times that the US should not bother pursuing Six Party Talks and instead try to cease the initiave in negotiations with North Korea by pursuing bi-lateral talks instead:

Dealing with North Korea has generally been very much like being suckered into a high school game of chicken. For non-American readers, you may have seen the classic movie, “American Graffiti,” where hot rodders would speed toward each other on a road to see who would lose their nerve and swerve to safety first.

Imagine a reluctant America, representing the majority of the six-party talks’ members, being forced to play chicken. Pyongyang is flashing its headlights on its Russian-made Lada and is picking up speed, three miles out, rushing toward America’s Cadillac. Naturally, if the two vehicles collide, the Lada is going to be little more than a small pile of debris on the highway, but the Cadillac won’t leave looking very good either. So what is the Cadillac’s driver going to do? What is the man in the Lada counting on?

America has essentially three choices: one, increase its speed, expecting the faster and harder the Cadillac hits the Lada, the less damage to America; two, swerve out of the lane and let Pyongyang claim victory and tell the world America doesn’t have what it takes (and probably take home some kind of prize); or three, grow up and tell itself and others that chicken is kid stuff and that America refuses to play the game.  [Joong Ang Ilbo]

Click the link to read the rest of what Tom Coyner recommends.  So what do you think?