`Apology' welcome.

Byline: The Register-Guard

North Korea's surprise message to South Korea last week looked like an apology, sounded like an apology and was accepted as an apology. So for the sake of future peace between the two Koreas, and the ultimate goal of reconciliation, the world should view it as an apology. Whatever it's called, it should serve to reduce tensions and lead to renewed talks - which is definitely worth applauding.

Further fueling hopes for a Korean thaw, Russia's foreign minister, Igor Ivanov, said Monday that North Korean officials are ready to meet with U.S. officials to discuss Korean reconciliation and other issues "without any preliminary conditions" and that U.S./North Korean talks could begin this week at a Southeast Asian summit in Brunei. Relations between the United States and North Korea deteriorated after President Bush lumped North Korea with Iran and Iraq into his "axis of evil."

North Korea's message dealt with a deadly battle between North and South Korean vessels in the Yellow Sea. It was delivered to the truce village of Panmunjom in the demilitarized zone separating the two countries, and was short and to the point: "Feeling regretful for the unforeseen armed clash, we are of the view that both sides should make joint efforts to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents in the future." The message was signed by the North's Kim Ryong Song, who is in charge of negotiations with South Korea.

The June 29 sea battle resulted in the sinking of a South Korean patrol boat and the deaths of four sailors and the wounding of 19 others. North Korea said it also suffered casualties in the exchange, but has given no details. The skirmish erupted over the South's apparent attempt to block a North Korean vessel from crossing south of a line in the Yellow Sea that the North has never recognized. The confrontation was a sobering reminder of North Korea's unpredictability.

North Korea's message came just hours after South Korean President Kim Dae Jung said his country demanded an apology for the incident. The suddenness of the response caught the South Korean government by surprise. But it offered concrete hope for the resumption of North/South talks in early August to prepare for the first round of cabinet-level talks since senior officials from both sides debated for five days last September.

Among the issues likely to be on the agenda if talks resume are reconstruction of the North Korean side of a railroad that would link the Koreas near Panmunjom for the first time since the start of the Korean War in 1950 and a more consistent and broader form of family reunions between relatives on each side of the North-South border. There are other issues the two sides could discuss, to be sure, but those would be a welcome start toward renewed - and, with luck, continuous - dialogue.

The unexpected message could - and should - lead to better relations between the two Koreas, and perhaps between North Korea and the United States. If so, the phrase "feeling regretful" will have a lasting place in the history of that troubled peninsula.