North Korea may give up its nuclear weapons drive if the reclusive communist state is duly rewarded in return, South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun said on Wednesday. "Some radicals argue North Korea is just footdragging without being serious about negotiating (to end its nuclear weapon programme), but our government does not think so," Roh told the Brazilian newspaper Estado de Sao Paulo. The comments came Wednesday as the South Korean leader began an official visit to Brazil as part of the government's campaign to find new business in the region. In the same newspaper interview, Roh said that apparent anti-American sentiment among South Koreans can be interpreted as an expression of their desire to place South Korean-U.S. relations on an equal and healthy footing. "We would be able to get over it if South Korea and the United States maintain a healthy cooperation under the 'give and take' rule about major issues," he said. Roh's two-day stay in Brazil started with a meeting with Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The two leaders released a statement after their meeting calling on North Korea to return to the six-party talks aimed at resolving the international dispute over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme. The last round of talks was held in June between officials from North and South Korea, the United States, China, Russia and Japan. A fourth round planned for late September failed to take place after Pyongyang refused to attend until South Korean experiments with nuclear materials was clarified. ---SP 1338 Local Time 1038 GMT
