Bush seeks united front for N. Korea disarmament

BUSAN, South Korea -- Counseling resolve and patience, President Bush sought a show of unity today with South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun on demands that North Korea abandon its nuclear weapons program.

Among those gathering here for a 21-nation summit were the leaders of the five countries -- the United States, China, South Korea, Russia and Japan -- negotiating with North Korea for its nuclear disarmament.

A day earlier, Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi met in Kyoto, Japan, and called for the dismantling of North Korea's nuclear program.

South Korea has resisted the tough approach advocated by the Bush administration for ending the impasse with North Korea, opposing the idea of military action if diplomacy fails. South Korea also is cool to the idea of taking the standoff to the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions.

"The tone is different sometimes because, of course, for the people of the Republic of Korea, the demilitarized zone is right at their doorstep," said Mike Green, senior director for Asian affairs on the National Security Council.

Green said Seoul, the South Korean capital, is as close to the demilitarized zone separating the two countries and to North Korean artillery as the White House is to Dulles International Airport, some 30 miles outside Washington.

"It's very much a clear and present threat for the people," he said.

Green, talking with reporters on Air Force One as it flew to South Korea, said Bush and Roh would discuss ways to strengthen coordination on foreign policy. The objective was to have the pursuit of North-South reconciliation reinforce the disarmament talks, Green said. One proposal calls for a peace treaty to replace the armistice that halted the 1950-1953 Korean War.

Bush met Roh in Gyeongju, the ancient capital of Korea. About 40 demonstrators, some carrying signs that read "Bush get out," gathered in Gyeongju to protest the president's visit and the U.S. military's plans to relocate its main base in South Korea to a city outside Seoul.

Roh has been a major supporter of Bush's Iraq policy. South Korea is the third-largest contributor of troops behind the United States and Britain, deploying more than 3,000 soldiers. Like Bush, Roh's domestic approval ratings are down, and his foes call him a lame duck.

Bush flew here for the annual summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, representing 21 countries that account for about half the world's trade.

APEC is expected to call for progress at the next round of World Trade Organization talks in Hong Kong next month toward a global trade agreement.

APEC represents "a significant bloc in the WTO membership," said Faryar Shirzad, deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs. "And so when they speak and lay out an agenda of ambition, it's an agenda that the membership at the WTO takes note of and helps drive the negotiating dynamics in a constructive way."

In addition to the APEC meetings, Bush will hold separate talks with the leaders of Malaysia, Russia and Indonesia before traveling to China on Saturday.

Looking ahead to talks about North Korea, Bush said his objective was to remind his partners that they need to stick together and send a consistent message.

The most recent round of negotiations adjourned Friday with no sign of progress, but it's likely they will resume in Beijing next month or in January. In September, North Korea promised to end its nuclear program in exchange for aid, diplomatic recognition and security guarantees.

North Korea has insisted that it will not make any move until the United States first offers concessions for giving up its nuclear weapons. Washington has refused the demand.

The Pentagon has begun pulling thousands of U.S. troops out of South Korea, where it has maintained a contingent of about 37,000 since the cease-fire amid concerns that the communist North might try to reunite the two Koreas by launching an all-out attack.

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On the Net:

CIA World Factbook on South Korea: http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ks.html

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation: http://www.apecsec.org.sg/

White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov