The latest round of normalization talks held in Beijing last week between Japan and North Korea failed to reach any specific agreement. Although no statement was issued, it seems clear that the two sides largely agreed to disagree, at least for the moment. The two nations remained divided over the pivotal question of "settling the past" -- a veiled reference to Japan's colonization of the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to the end of World War II.
The stalemate in Japan-North Korea relations is in marked contrast to stepped-up moves toward detente on the Korean Peninsula, the world's last Cold-War frontier. The two Koreas, following up their historic summit meeting in June, are now edging ever closer to reconciliation. Washington is rapidly improving ties with Pyongyang, as evidenced by U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's ground-breaking trip last month. A number of other nations are also planning to establish diplomatic relations with North Korea.
The current round of normalization talks, the third in a series, started in April after a lapse of seven and a half years. In the first two rounds, both sides went no further than explaining their basic positions. During the latest session, they also discussed specific issues in an effort to find common ground. But the question of "settling the past" stood in the way of progress.