Obama promises Park close cooperation
By Kim Young-jin
U.S. President Barack Obama
U.S. President Barack Obama told President-elect Park Geun-hye that close coordination is essential to deal with “grave challenges” presented by North Korea, a spokesperson said Thursday.
The remark was included in a congratulatory message delivered a day earlier by a visiting U.S. delegation in Seoul to coordinate ahead of Park’s inauguration on Feb. 25.
“Though we are now facing grave challenges from North Korea, close cooperation between South Korea and the United States will play a key role in effectively dealing with North Korea and other major issues,” Park Sun-kyoo, a spokesman for the transition team, quoted Obama’s message as saying.
The message indicated that Washington will seek to maintain close policy with Park after the alliance saw a heyday under the watch of Obama and President Lee Myung-bak. Park and Lee are both from the conservative Saenuri Party.
Obama also noted that the allies share common interests in human rights, poverty reduction, the environment, and nuclear non-proliferation.
This may become more complicated under Park, however, as she pledged during her campaign to engage Pyongyang. Lee’s tough policy demanded denuclearization steps from the North ahead of fulsome engagement. This dovetailed with Obama’s “strategic patience” approach, taken after Pyongyang’s 2009 nuclear test, that put the onus on the Stalinist state for engagement.
Despite a low appetite for engagement in Washington, U.S. officials appear to be open to efforts by Park ― the daughter of the late authoritarian leader Park Chung-hee, to “build trust” with the Kim Jong-un regime.
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who led the American delegation, told reporters Wednesday that Washington was “very comfortable” that coordination would be maintained even in light of Park’s promise to test engagement with Pyongyang. He pledged the Obama administration’s “strongest possible support” for the alliance.
During the talks, Park told Campbell and other officials she would leave the window open for dialogue with Pyongyang and providing humanitarian assistance to the impoverished nation, indicating that she will seek Washington’s support in carrying out her trust building pledge.
The alliance is currently seeing a heyday after the Lee Myung-bak administration focused its diplomacy on Washington. Analysts expect this to continue under Park, though they say she will simultaneously attempt to bolster political ties with China.
Park added in the talks trust between the allies would allow them to find solutions to pending bilateral issues. Park added that how to handle spent nuclear fuel was an important issue for Seoul. The sides are in talks to rewrite a 1974 nuclear accord, which bans Seoul from reprocessing spent fuel. Park hoped that an “alternative” to the situation could be found.