Nuke Talks Have Not Broken Down: Vershbow
By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
South Korea and the United States have successfully developed their relations with substantial achievements over the past three years, though bilateral ties went bad sometimes during the liberal Roh Moo-hyun government, outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Alexander Vershbow said Thursday.
Vershbow, who will return to Washington, D.C. after three years of service here, expressed high hopes that the Korea-U.S. alliance will be upgraded to a ``strategic'' alliance beyond the security area.
``I'm very optimistic about the prospect for the Korea-U.S. relationship,'' he said in a farewell luncheon with Korean journalists at his residence in Seoul. ``The relationship has a lot of potential that has yet to be realized. We can be closer partners in dealing with global issues other than security, including climate change, food and energy security, and development of the Third World. There are so many areas where South Korea can become a bigger contributor.''
Asked about the Korea-U.S. relations during the Roh administration, which put priority on ties with North Korea and an independent defense posture from the U.S. military, Vershbow said there were ``ups and downs.''
``The level of confidence at the highest level was less than we hoped sometimes,'' he said, referring to disharmony between the two nations in approaching North Korea's nuclear issue.
``We saw some difficulties with the strategy on North Korea under the last administration, but I think there's more of a common view now on the importance of cooperating so that we can ensure that the limited leverage we have (on North Korea) can have the maximum effect,'' said the U.S. envoy.
On Tuesday, North Korea announced that it had suspended disablement of its nuclear facilities in Yonbyon, a key step under the Feb. 13 denuclearization-for-aid accord signed with the United States, South Korea, China, Japan and Russia. It blamed Washington for failing to remove it from a terrorism blacklist.
The United States has reiterated the establishment of a protocol on ways to verify the North's nuclear declaration made in June should come first before the delisting.
``Nuclear verification is a fundamental issue and North Korea is well aware of that,'' he said. ``Talks have not broken off and I think there's still a chance that we can move forward to the next step of denuclearization, which will include deleting Pyongyang from the list of state sponsors of terror.''
Vershbow cited the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement and an agreement on the transition of wartime operational control from the U.S. to South Korea in 2012, both reached last year, as major accomplishments.
The landmark trade deal has yet to be ratified by legislatures of both countries.
He also referred to agreements on Seoul's joining the U.S. Visa Waiver Program and the Work, English Study and Travel (WEST) program.
Under the WEST program agreed upon at summit talks between President Lee Myung-bak and President George W. Bush earlier this month, up to 5,000 South Korean university students can go to the United States to study English and get internships for 18 months as early as next year.
``There are so many things we are going to miss. We love the city (Seoul) and its unique atmosphere,'' said the ambassador, who will be replaced by Kathleen Stephens, a former Peace Corps volunteer in Korea.
Vershbow said he will be retiring from his 32-year career involving 11 years of service overseas after returning to Washington.