Chong Wa Dae on June 7 welcomed a U.S. move to resume dialogue with North Korea, but its officials remain cautious about getting overly excited as to the prospect of any immediate results in such talks.

Following the White House statement that President George W. Bush had ordered his foreign policy team to initiate negotiations with Pyongyang, Park Joon-young, presidential press secretary, said, "The Korean government welcomes President Bush’s decision to begin serious dialogue with North Korea now that a U.S. policy review on the Stalinist state is complete."

In a written commentary, Park said, "We believe that the outcome of the U.S. policy review reflects on close consultations with Seoul and hope that the two countries will closely consult each other in the process of U.S.- North Korea dialogue."

The press secretary said that Seoul hoped for a serious and sincere attitude by Pyongyang in its dialogue with Washington that would result in meaningful progress, contributing to peace and stability on the Korean peninsula.

In a briefing, a Chong Wa Dae official said, "We are neither optimistic nor pessimistic about prospects for the dialogue."

"The Bush statement may not be as good as the Perry process, but one notable factor in it is that the U.S. offers incentives in return for Pyongyang’s good behavior," he said.

The official, however, said the important factor is Pyongyang’s response.

He noted that the North has been anxious to talk with the U.S. once again but used tough rhetoric in order to weaken its bargaining position, adding, "It is hard to predict how the North will respond."

Regarding the contents of the Bush statement, he explained that the U.S. didn’t mention North Korea’s status as a sponsor of terrorism because the issue has been accented enough so far, and that the U.S. opted to shift its focus on Pyongyang’s conventional arms deployed in the border areas.