Jay Lefkowitz, the U.S. special envoy on North Korean human rights, has publicly questioned the Bush administration's approach to dealing with North Korea:
Lefkowitz charged late Thursday that North Korea used its nuclear arsenal to "extort" aid, was "not serious" about disarming, and would likely not give up its weapons before US President George W. Bush's term ends in January 2009. He also said that China and South Korea -- the two nations with the most leverage over the North Korean regime -- were "unwilling to apply significant pressure on Pyongyang" to abandon its nuclear weapons arsenal. Because of this, he said, recent six-party talks "in actuality, became a bilateral negotiation between the US and North Korea." Lefkowitz called for a "new approach" in disarmament talks -- "perhaps even bilaterally" -- with North Korea that would permanently link human rights as part of the engagement policy and a critical condition for any normalization of diplomatic relations. Using unusually sharp words, he said North Korea "has not kept its word," was "not serious about disarming in a timely manner" and "its conduct does not appear to be that of a government that is willing to come in from the cold." Lefkowitz also accused Pyongyang of being a "serial proliferator" and using its nuclear arms to "extort" foreign aid, saying there was no guarantee that US military and nuclear strength could prevent it from passing on nuclear arms or technology to Islamist extremists or their backers.
Lefkowitz has one overarching concern--human rights in North Korea--and there's little doubt that the current process is unlikely to see progress on that front. But there's also no reason to doubt his assessment of the nature of the six party talks, or that North Korea is negotiating in bad faith. A number of Conservatives, most notably John Bolton, have broken ranks with the administration over the "disablement" process, but this is the first time someone has done so from the inside. Hopefully his boss is paying attention.