As American troops secure Baghdad—the capital of one nation in President Bush’s “Axis of Evil”—a group of scholars and diplomats gathered to discuss the status of another: Pyongyang.

A panel discussion called “Resolving the Korean Crisis: Voices of the Region” brought North Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations as well as policy makers from both Koreas, China, Russia and Japan to the Charles Hotel yesterday.

The discussion, sponsored by the Korea Institute, the Korea Society, and the Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations, drew an audience of about 200 people.

Panelists said they were fearful that the United States might take unilateral action against North Korea, especially if China and Russia block efforts to deal with North Korea through the U.N. Security Council.

“I think they [North Koreans] are mentally preparing if not prepared for the eventuality of surgical strikes at least,” said Dae Sook Suh, a professor at the University of Hawaii, mentioning that he worried that Japan might develop nuclear weapons in response to North Korea, starting an arms race.

Tsuyoshi Sunohara, a Japanese journalist from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said he believes that North Korea would use weapons of mass destruction if there were a U.S. attack.

“This will require the continuing efforts of not only Japan, but America, Korea, China, the Russians. But it is in our best interest as Japanese to prevent this kind of nightmare scenario,” he said.

“I don’t think there’s any way we can make George W. Bush say, ‘I’m happy. North Korea is clean,’ so how can that be the goal?” said Han S. Park, a professor at the University of Georgia.

Instead of clear policy objectives, he said, the United States has a “theological doctrine” that only allows for what he called North Korea’s death without discussion.

The panelists called for a formal end to the Korean War, which has only been settled by a U.N.-brokered truce, and expressed hope that the two Koreas would be able to normalize relations.

“We don’t have to tell Koreans to reconcile with North Korea. They are all Koreans, and they will do it whether you like it or not,” Park said.

Large numbers of South Koreans moving freely in North Korea could prevent military action by the U.S., said Mansourov.

Suh added that the principle of co-prosperity instead of a “zero sum struggle for legitimacy” had become South Korea’s policy, so a reconciliation might be possible.