[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: WILLIAM J. CLINTON (2000-2001, Book III)]
[December 28, 2000]
[Page 2811]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



[[Page 2811]]


Statement on Efforts To Improve Relations With North Korea
December 28, 2000

    For several years, we have been working with our east Asian allies 
to improve relations with North Korea in a way that strengthens peace 
and stability on the Korean Peninsula. We have made substantial 
progress, including the 1994 Agreed Framework, which froze North Korea's 
production of plutonium for nuclear weapons under ongoing international 
inspections, and the 1999 moratorium on long-range missile tests. I 
believe new opportunities are opening for progress toward greater 
stability and peace on the Korean Peninsula. However, I have determined 
that there is not enough time while I am President to prepare the way 
for an agreement with North Korea that advances our national interest 
and provides the basis for a trip by me to Pyongyang. Let me emphasize 
that I believe this process of engagement with North Korea, in 
coordination with South Korea and Japan, holds great promise and that 
the United States should continue to build on the progress we have made.
    Our policy toward North Korea has been based on a strong framework 
developed at my request by former Secretary of Defense William 
Perry and carried out by Secretary of State 
Madeleine Albright and Special Adviser 
Wendy Sherman. We have coordinated each step 
forward with our allies the Republic of Korea and Japan. The engagement 
policy of President Kim Dae-jung and his 
personal leadership have spurred this process and earned the world's 
admiration. Taken together, our efforts have reduced tensions on the 
Korean Peninsula, improved prospects for enduring peace and stability in 
the region, and opened an opportunity to substantially reduce, if not 
eliminate, the threat posed by North Korean missile development and 
exports.
    This past October, when DPRK Chairman Kim Chong-il invited me to visit his country, and later when Secretary 
Albright traveled to Pyongyang, 
Chairman Kim put forward a serious proposal concerning his missile 
program. Since then, we have discussed with North Korea proposals to 
eliminate its missile export program as well as to halt further missile 
development. While there is insufficient time for me to complete the 
work at hand, there is sufficient promise to continue this effort. The 
United States has a clear national interest in seeing it through.