Nuclear past and present

THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY of the first atomic bombing was occasion for solemn remembrances of the devastation inflicted by the most powerful weapon in human history. Yet the world’s attention has since turned from Hiroshima and Nagasaki to Beijing and Esfahan.

The Chinese capital hosted 13 days of talks aimed at getting North Korea to forgo nuclear weapons. In Esfahan, the new Iranian government on Monday resumed processing uranium, a preliminary step on the road to a nuclear arsenal. In many ways, the nuclear threat has grown only greater since August 1945.

Until recently, Japan’s experience as the only nation to suffer atomic bombings has given it a “nuclear allergy,” making nuclear weapons there all but unthinkable. But it could change course if neighboring North Korea goes forward. Taiwan could also follow suit. So could South Korea, which last year reported to the International Atomic Energy Agency that in 2000 it enriched uranium nearly enough to make weapons; it said it ultimately abandoned the program.

The other danger is that erratic and secretive Pyongyang could provide weapons to terrorists. The need for the U.S., China and other nations to persuade North Korea to give up producing nuclear weapons has never been more important.

The Bush administration has loosened the restrictions on talks with North Korea, letting its chief negotiator have substantive one-on-one discussions with his North Korean counterpart as part of the six-nation talks in Beijing. That flexibility made the talks more productive than earlier rounds. China has been important in pressuring Pyongyang to return to the talks after refusing for a year; South Korea helped by offering 2 million kilowatts of electricity to the energy-starved North.

North Korea may already have enough plutonium for several bombs; Iran is considered further away from making the weapons. The U.S. and its allies are trying to get Pyongyang to dismantle all nuclear programs, civilian and military. Britain, France and Germany, the lead negotiators with Iran, are trying to get Tehran to limit nuclear activities in exchange for economic incentives. If Iran refuses, it faces the threat of economic and political sanctions at the U.N., unless China or Russia exercises a veto.

It has been difficult to separate rhetoric from intentions for both countries. Pyongyang objected to President Bush characterizing President Kim Jong Il as a “pygmy” and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice calling the nation an “outpost of tyranny.” Its public remarks during the Beijing talks were more temperate. Iran, as if translating North Korea’s belligerence into Persian, said Europe’s offer of aid was an “insult.” Yet at the same time, it pledged to continue talks with European negotiators.

It’s unclear whether either nation will yield on nuclear weapons. Both need financial and energy aid. Both have lied about their atomic research.

What’s certain is that the U.S. and other nations must take a consistent, unified stand in their efforts to persuade Iran and North Korea to forgo the most fearsome weapons the world has known.