NORTH KOREA . . . THROW IN A NUKE PLANT, PLEASE

A North Korean newspaper says that the government will demand a new nuclear reactor as a condition of opening its nuclear program to international inspectors. If that deal flies, according to the government organ, Pyongyang will seek a "package deal" that includes full diplomatic ties. The talk may not be so tough, since the Clinton Administration quietly floated the nuke offer weeks ago. Even as relations with the North grew somewhat warmer, the U.S. had to reprimand the South. Assistant Secretary of State Robert Gallucci, the chief U.S. negotiator, slammed Seoul for rhetorical attacks on the North and for the wide publicity Seoul gave to a North Korean defector.