N. Korea Renews Threat to Quit Non-Proliferation Pact : Diplomacy: Communists say U.S. ‘strong-arm’ tactics would result in their withdrawing from treaty.

North Korea’s Foreign Ministry today renewed a threat of a year ago to withdraw from the nuclear non-proliferation treaty “if the United States resorts to strong-arm politics and pressure,” the North’s official Korean Central News Agency reported in a broadcast monitored here.

The new threat came on the day that the United States and North Korea had been scheduled to hold a third round of high-level negotiations, and the International Atomic Energy Agency was expected to announce in Vienna that nuclear inspections it conducted in North Korea this month were deficient.

The U.S.-North Korea talks were contingent on North Korea permitting full inspection of its nuclear facilities and exchanging presidential envoys with South Korea.

North Korea failed to fulfill either prerequisite but claimed today that the United States had committed itself without conditions to the high-level talks.

“If the United States avoids the (U.S.-North Korea) talks and resorts to strong-arm politics and pressure, we will have no alternative but to carry into practice the measures announced in the (North Korean) government’s statement dated March 12 last year in order to defend the sovereignty of the nation and the security of the state,” the Foreign Ministry said.

Citing an annual joint U.S.-South Korean “Team Spirit” military exercise that was in progress at the time, North Korea declared last year that it would withdraw from the non-proliferation treaty. Three months later, at U.S. urging, it agreed to “suspend the withdrawal” from the global pact limiting the spread of nuclear weapons.

Today’s North Korea statement cited as an example of “strong-arm” tactics the expected IAEA announcement that the inspection agency could not verify North Korean compliance with the treaty--an action that would send the issue to the U.N. Security Council. North Korea also warned that it would withdraw from the treaty if the United States and South Korea conduct this year’s Team Spirit exercise.

It also declared that it has “no obligation to permit any further IAEA inspections.”

South Korea’s Cabinet today approved rescheduling the military exercise, which had been canceled pending the outcome of the inspections of the North’s nuclear facilities.

North Korea’s threat was issued after Secretary of State Warren Christopher predicted Sunday that China will not veto a U.N. Security Council resolution imposing economic sanctions on North Korea if Kim Il Sung’s hard-line regime refuses to permit inspections of its suspected nuclear weapons sites.

“China has a very strong interest--the same one we have--that North Korea not go nuclear,” Christopher said. “I think they will support us on the Korean question because it is in their own self-interest.”

Interviewed on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Christopher confirmed that the Clinton Administration will seek U.N. sanctions, reinstate suspended U.S.-South Korea military maneuvers and ship Patriot missile defense systems to South Korea unless North Korea reverses course and permits IAEA inspections.

“We’ll be seeking a resolution,” Christopher said. “I think we’ll be preparing for trade sanctions, but exactly what happens in the U.N., we’ll have to wait to see what happens.”

Because China is one of North Korea’s few remaining allies, there has been speculation that Beijing will use its Security Council veto to block action against Pyongyang.

Those fears are heightened by the friction in U.S.-China relations caused by U.S. criticism of China’s human rights performance.

Christopher also said the Administration will not back down from its threat to cancel China’s normal favorable trade status unless Beijing makes substantial progress on human rights.

The Administration’s decision to punish North Korea for blocking nuclear inspections won bipartisan support on Capitol Hill.

Interviewed on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Senate Minority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.) and House Majority Leader Richard A. Gephardt (D-Mo.) both called for U.N. sanctions, joint military exercises and deployment of Patriot missile systems.

Dole went even further, suggesting “we may want to beef up our own forces there.” Gephardt agreed more troops may be required. There are more than 36,000 U.S. troops in South Korea.

Christopher said there are no plans now to increase U.S. troop strength in Korea, although he said, “we’ll be looking at that situation day in and day out.”

Korea is a dramatic exception to the Administration’s preference of keeping U.S. ground troops out of potential trouble spots.

The U.S. forces in Korea would probably come under fire in the opening minutes of any new North Korea-South Korea conflict.

Jameson reported from Tokyo, Kempster from Washington.