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CNN Live At Daybreak
North Korea Admits to Having Nuclear Weapon, or Does It?
Aired November 18, 2002 - 05:07 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: North Korea admits to having a nuclear weapon -- or does it? Confused? You're certainly not alone.
Our Seoul bureau chief Sohn Jie-Ae joins us on the phone to explain this mystery -- so, what exactly did they say on North Korean radio?
SOHN JIE-AE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, it's a very controversial two phrases. One is kajigetaoita (ph), which means entitled to have, and the other is kajigetata (ph), means already possess. Now if North Korea had said it was, it had the entitled to have nuclear weapons, it is no different from what it had said so far. If it had said kajigetata, it means it already possesses. It puts the whole nuclear issue in a new ball game.
Now, North Korean watchers or listeners, in this case, really can't tell for sure. They're saying it's very, very difficult to tell what exactly North Korea said. But Seoul officials are wary, saying this is not the way North Korea usually makes such important statements. But the global focus on whether North Korea made such a claim or not reflects just how touch and go a situation this is now surrounding the Korean Peninsula -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, a question for you. Why come out and say anything publicly about this issue at all at such a sensitive time?
JIE-AE: Well, North Korea is making several public statements at this time. North Korea is actually at this point pretty angry at the United States. It wants, it says that it, it blames the United States for actually breaking the nuclear agreement in which the North in 1994 promised to suspend its suspected weapons in exchange for fuel oil and two light water reactors paid for by a U.S.-led consortium, because last week, the United States, Japan, South Korea and the European Union decided to suspend the fuel oil shipments to North Korea from next month in response to this violation of the nuclear pact.
So they are at this point pretty angry at the United States -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Understand.
Sohn Jie-Ae, thanks.
We'll get back to you later on DAYBREAK.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired November 18, 2002 - 05:07 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: North Korea admits to having a nuclear weapon -- or does it? Confused? You're certainly not alone.
Our Seoul bureau chief Sohn Jie-Ae joins us on the phone to explain this mystery -- so, what exactly did they say on North Korean radio?
SOHN JIE-AE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, it's a very controversial two phrases. One is kajigetaoita (ph), which means entitled to have, and the other is kajigetata (ph), means already possess. Now if North Korea had said it was, it had the entitled to have nuclear weapons, it is no different from what it had said so far. If it had said kajigetata, it means it already possesses. It puts the whole nuclear issue in a new ball game.
Now, North Korean watchers or listeners, in this case, really can't tell for sure. They're saying it's very, very difficult to tell what exactly North Korea said. But Seoul officials are wary, saying this is not the way North Korea usually makes such important statements. But the global focus on whether North Korea made such a claim or not reflects just how touch and go a situation this is now surrounding the Korean Peninsula -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, a question for you. Why come out and say anything publicly about this issue at all at such a sensitive time?
JIE-AE: Well, North Korea is making several public statements at this time. North Korea is actually at this point pretty angry at the United States. It wants, it says that it, it blames the United States for actually breaking the nuclear agreement in which the North in 1994 promised to suspend its suspected weapons in exchange for fuel oil and two light water reactors paid for by a U.S.-led consortium, because last week, the United States, Japan, South Korea and the European Union decided to suspend the fuel oil shipments to North Korea from next month in response to this violation of the nuclear pact.
So they are at this point pretty angry at the United States -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Understand.
Sohn Jie-Ae, thanks.
We'll get back to you later on DAYBREAK.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
