Shen Dingli, Executive Deputy Dean of the Institute of International Studies at Fudan University, wrote in an editorial in the Shanghai-based Xinmin Weekly that the orchestra's visit also reflected the Bush administration's current situation: Due to the messy Iraqi situation and slide of the U.S. economy, Washington had to act more mildly to avoid more problems in its diplomacy. In turn, the North Koreans needed to give up on some level to get economic compensation to develop its economy.

Both sides need events such as the Pyongyang concert to facilitate communication, because so far very few channels exist for them to exchange views in any fields, said Shen. If North Korea and the United States made great progress in setting up regular channels of communication and exchanging ideas, Washington would possibly remove North Korea from its list of states that support terrorism and withdraw U.S. economic sanctions against it. This would have the practical benefit of boosting North Korea's economy, he added.

"What North Korea is thinking about is how to benefit more during the current climate of regionalization and globalization, and getting rid of U.S. sanctions is the first step to become more globalized," Shen said.

Shen also said the normalization of North Korean-U.S. relations would stabilize the situation in Northeast Asia and would be greatly welcomed by neighboring countries, including China. He forecast that the "music tour" would help to normalize North Korean-U.S. bilateral relations as well as push forward the six-party talks. If the two countries' bilateral relationship was on the right track, it would be very positive in settling the nuclear problem on the Korean Peninsula, Shen said.

The experts also believe that a settlement of the North Korean nuclear issue would promote a settlement of the Iranian nuclear issue. Iran has said that it has the right to pursue nuclear development for civilian purposes, though some members of the international community believe it would develop nuclear weapons instead.

If this spillover effect were to happen, it would be a win-win situation for everyone, Shen said. But he believes that this technical problem could be easily resolved with legal inspections and supervision from the international community through the International Atomic Energy Agency.

"After all, non-proliferation is a common target of all countries that they are working hard to reach," Shen said.

An Overview of the New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is the oldest and most famous of all major American orchestras. Founded in 1842, it is widely considered the definitive international-level orchestra in the United States. Although it is a cultural organization, its performances abroad are regarded as a barometer of U.S. diplomatic policies. The U.S. Government has supported its many foreign visits. For example, the orchestra gave a concert in the Soviet Union in 1959, which helped ease its relations between Moscow and Washington. When asked if he thought the same could happen in North Korea, Lorin Maazel, the New York Philharmonic's Music Director, gave a clever response by saying, "There are no parallels in history; there are similarities." During the orchestra's concert, Maazel told the U.S. media that the concert could be "a very small step that would hopefully spark other cultural and social exchanges." Maazel, who has emphasized the New York Philharmonic's role as a music and cultural organization, was quoted by The New York Times as saying, "We thought there may be a mission accomplished here…and we may have been instrumental in opening a little door." It was reported that Iran has now invited the New York Philharmonic to perform in Tehran and that the orchestra would very likely accept the offer.