By Na Jeong-ju
Staff Reporter
The White House announced the schedule for President George W. Bush's visit to South Korea ``by mistake'' and later apologized to Seoul for the diplomatic faux pas, Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday.
The presidential office accepted the apology, but expressed regret over the ``unilateral'' announcement, according to officials from the office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
``Seoul has agreed with Washington to invite President Bush in early August. The mistake happened while both sides were discussing on when to make a public statement about the visit,'' a Cheong Wa Dae spokesman said on condition of anonymity. ``The White House later apologized for the error and said it was a mistake.''
During a press briefing in Washington Tuesday, Dennis Wilder, director of Asian affairs at the National Security Council, said Bush will arrive in South Korea Aug. 5 for a two-day visit before heading to Beijing for the opening of the Olympics, Aug. 8.
Wilder also said Bush will meet with South Korea's President Lee Myung-bak at the G8 summit of industrialized countries in Japan next week.
Immediately after the news was released through foreign media, Cheong Wa Dae said the date of his arrival was still to be decided. Hours later, however, the presidential office officially confirmed the visit, and said Wilder mistakenly made the date public.
Some observers say the incident reflects Washington's uneasiness over Seoul's mishandling of the issue of American beef imports.
Seoul, which had been critical about resuming American beef imports over concerns about mad cow disease, agreed to allow the import just days before President Lee held a summit with President Bush at Camp David in April.
Candlelit vigils began in Seoul, with people demanding the Lee administration renegotiate the deal and take measures to contain any health risks.
Last week, the government allowed the U.S. beef sale despite the protests, and organizers have threatened to intensify their battle against the beef import.
Foreign ministry officials said Seoul should have announced the date first in accordance with diplomatic protocol.
``Normally, a country which invites the president of the other country makes public the visit first or they announce it simultaneously,'' a ministry spokesman said. ``Seoul and Washington agreed to hold the summit in Seoul before the Beijing Olympics during a recent visit by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, but didn't set the exact date. Both sides later agreed on the schedule and Seoul was preparing to announce the visit.''
Cheong Wa Dae officials said it is not true that Washington broke protocol because the announcement was not intended, and was a slip up. The White House sent an apology through the South Korean embassy in the United States, they said.
Initially, it was widely assumed that President Bush would visit South Korea in early July after attending the G8 summit in Japan. The White House said last week Bush would meet with Lee on the sidelines of the G8 summit, but that his South Korea visit would take place later when he flies to China in August for the Olympics.