NOTE: This post was originally published at princetonalumniweekly.blogspot.com/
North Korea expert expresses cautious optimism
Speaking just a week after six-party talks yielded a new agreement to shut down North Korea’s nuclear program, former State Department official Evans Revere ’76 said in a Feb. 20 campus lecture that the United States would be well advised to “keep expectations low.” Revere, who visited North Korea seven times while posted in South Korea and Japan and talked informally with North Korean counterparts on numerous other occasions, noted that U.S. diplomats have been down the same path before. “There have been lots of ups and downs in this process, and there may be lots more,” he said. “But there are some very good signs that have come out of this dialogue and the recent agreement.”
Revere is the president of the Korea Society, a New York-based group that studies Korean politics and business affairs. He said that with an agreement in place, this is a good time for officials on both sides to reflect on the process that led to this point and ask questions about the future. Is the United States working to prevent policy gaps that the North Koreans could use to drive wedges between the United States and its allies? Has North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons enhanced its security? Is the six-party process up to the task of addressing all of the issues on the table? On the latter question, Revere said that the United States must consider direct, one-on-one engagement at the highest levels of leadership, because that interaction “might be the clincher” for a long-term diplomatic solution.
On track
Bryan Sharkey ’09 is in the lead on his way to victory in the mile with a time of 4:14.42 in the Princeton Invitational Feb. 17 at Jadwin Gym. The Tigers placed seven runners in the top 10 in the race.
Photo by Frank Wojciechowski
Ice action on Alumni Day
The Princeton men’s and women’s ice hockey teams will host key games at Baker Rink on Feb. 24 as the University celebrates Alumni Day. At 3:30 p.m., the Tiger men, who are aiming for their first home playoff series in eight years, play ECAC Hockey League powerhouse St. Lawrence in the regular season finale for both teams. And at 7 p.m., the Tiger women face Colgate in the second game of a best-of-three ECAC Hockey League quarterfinal playoff series. Princeton reached the eight-team women’s NCAA tournament last season.
Alumni in the news
On Feb. 15, The Boston Globe ran a story about a Princeton connection that helped the Boston Red Sox land Japanese star pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. Stanford professor Dan Okimoto ’65 and Red Sox CEO Larry Lucchino ’67 were friends as undergraduates, and Okimoto served as a valued adviser during Boston’s recruitment of Matsuzaka. … Charles Zukoski *85, vice chancellor for research at the University of Illinois, was named to the National Academy of Engineering, according to the Feb. 12 issue of Chemical & Engineering News. … “Labyrinth,” a painting by Frank Stella ’58 that measures about 12 inches by 12 inches, sold for £288,000, or about $563,000, at a London auction Feb. 8, the International Herald Tribune reported. … “A Year on Earth,” a Discovery Kids documentary produced by Katie Carpenter ’79 and John Heminway ’66, earned an Emmy nomination in the children/youth/family special category, Broadcasting & Cable reported.