S. Korea: Iraq War May Embolden North

South Korea's prime minister warned Tuesday that high tensions over North Korea's nuclear programs could rise further with an outbreak of war in Iraq.

With the United States focused on Iraq, experts say North Korea might use the opportunity to cause alarm across the heavily guarded border with South Korea in an attempt to force Washington into direct negotiations.

The North's tactics might include missile launches, border skirmishes or reprocessing spent nuclear fuel to make atomic bombs.

The threat is even more worrying to the South because its economy is feeling the effects of the standoff with the North.

South Korean Prime Minister Goh Kun instructed Cabinet ministers to ensure stability on the peninsula, after U.S. President George W. Bush gave Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein a 48-hour deadline to flee his country or face a U.S.-led invasion.

"Tensions are rising on the Korean Peninsula because of the North Korean nuclear issue," Goh said. "A war against Iraq could have the effect of escalating the tensions."

To guard against possible terrorist attacks, South Korea said it will tighten security in ports and airports as well as at U.S. diplomatic and military facilities.

The U.S. military keeps 37,000 U.S. troops in South Korea as a deterrent against the North and currently is staging major joint exercises with South Korean forces.

North Korea again criticized the drills as a rehearsal for invasion.

"The U.S. reckless war exercises are an escalation of its aggressive and adventurous military actions against the (North) to seek a military solution to the nuclear issue," said the North's official news agency, KCNA.

North Koreans "are fully ready to go into action to wipe out the aggressors," it added.

KCNA quoted Yang Hyong Sop, vice president of the North's Supreme People's Assembly, as saying the situation on the Korean Peninsula is now the worst since the Korean War ended with a cease-fire in 1953. He urged all Koreans to unite to drive American troops out of South Korea.

North Korea also criticized plans by Japan to launch two spy satellites this month and its possible adoption of a U.S.-made missile defense system, calling them "a grave threat."

CBS News reports Japanese voters overwhelmingly oppose a U.S.-led attack on Iraq but the authorities believe they have no choice but to give priority to Tokyo's security alliance with Washington, given the worries about nearby North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

In Beijing, an envoy for U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said the threat of war in the Persian Gulf underscores the need for peaceful dialogue between Washington and North Korea. Washington wants to resolve the North Korean issue through talks involving other countries.

"As one conflict is about to begin in the Middle East, my job is to try and ensure that the Korean situation does not have the same result," said Maurice Strong, who was on his way to Pyongyang to meet North Korean leaders.

Strong said he saw no reason to believe North Korea and the United States are headed for military confrontation.

In recent days, the South Korean central bank governor has warned of the economic challenges posed by North Korea, and officials have met with global credit agencies, including Moody's, to keep Seoul's sovereign debt rating from being cut.

South Korea's economy is far better off than it was during the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, but the stock market is down 14 percent since the year started and its currency, the won, has slumped to five-month lows.

"A resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue in the shortest time is urgent and pivotal for the future improvement of the South Korean economy," said Lee Sangjae, senior economist at Hyundai Securities Research Center in Seoul.

The Korean nuclear crisis flared in October, when U.S. officials said North Korea admitted having a secret nuclear program in violation of a 1994 agreement.