    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book II)]
    [August 6, 2008]
    [Pages 1103-1109]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's News Conference With President Lee Myung-bak of South Korea in Seoul
    August 6, 2008

        President Lee. President Bush, along with Mrs. Bush and Barbara
    Bush, visited Korea. I would like to extend my warmest welcome to all
    three of them.
        It's been a little over 5 months since I became President, but
    already today's meeting was the third meeting with President Bush. We
    had a very deep and insightful meeting. President Bush and I reaffirmed
    once again the importance of our alliance, and we discussed ways on how
    to strengthen this alliance.
        The security environment is changing very rapidly, and there's a
    need for the Korea-U.S. alliance to adapt to these changes. With this in
    mind, President Bush and I agreed that not only must we strengthen the
    military and security aspect of our alliance, but also expand our
    alliance so that it encompasses the political, economic, social, and
    cultural aspects as well.
        Furthermore, we both agreed that we must work to expand our alliance
    so that Korea and the U.S. will continue to cooperate in various global
    issues, such as maintenance of peace, eradicating terrorism, climate
    change, and nonproliferation. Based on shared values and mutual trust,
    President Bush and I agreed to continue discussing specific ways to
    build our alliance into a strategic and future-oriented structure.
        President Bush and I agreed that through the six-party talks, there
    were positive steps made in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue.
    And I offered my sincere appreciation and praised President Bush's
    leadership in this endeavor. We agreed that our ultimate aim is to
    achieve the denuclearization of North Korea, and we agreed that this aim
    will be achieved by thoroughly verifying, through a rigorous
    verification regime, the completeness and correctness of the declaration
    submitted by North Korea.
        Throughout this process, Korea and the U.S. will, of course,
    continue our close cooperation. And President Bush and I agreed to work
    closely together so that the third-phase actions can take place as soon
    as possible, bringing us closer to our objective, which is North Korea
    completely abandoning all their nuclear weapons and existing nuclear
    programs.
        President Bush and I also agreed that the denuclearization of North
    Korea and substantive cooperation between the two Koreas should move
    along in parallel. Also, we made it clear that we are willing to
    actively assist North Korea strengthen exchange and cooperation with the
    international community so that it can take part in building peace and
    sharing in the prosperity of the peninsula and Northeast Asia.

    [[Page 1104]]

        Last July 11, at the Mount Kumgang resort area, an innocent South
    Korean national was killed, an unacceptable incident that should have
    never occurred and one that must never happen again. President Bush and
    I agreed that North Korea must be forthcoming and fully cooperate so
    that we find out what really happened and to come up with ways to
    prevent such incidents from recurring.
        We also discussed specific ways to strengthen cooperation between
    Korea and the U.S. President Bush said that he will do his best so that
    the ratification of the KORUS FTA, as well as Korea's participation in
    the Visa Waiver Program will be finalized within this year.
        I also welcomed the work-study program called WEST, the first-ever
    program of its kind to be proposed by the U.S. to any other country, and
    assured President Bush that I will do my best so that it can be
    implemented as soon as possible. This WEST Program allows approximately
    5,000 students every year to visit the U.S. for a period of 18 months so
    that they can study English, work, and have an opportunity to experience
    life in the U.S. This program will help young Koreans and Americans get
    a better understanding of each other's culture.
        President Bush and I agreed to further expand our cooperation in the
    area of space science and aeronautics by promoting joint space
    exploration, development of scientific research satellites, and Korea's
    participation in NASA's International Lunar Network project.
        We also talked about how we are going to continue working closely
    together, as well as with the international community, on issues of
    global concern, such as climate change, issues that we already had a
    chance to discuss during our last meeting in Toyako, Japan, last month.
        I thanked President Bush for his swift action in correcting the
    Dokdo issue, and I also explained to him the historical background of
    this critical importance.
        Once again, along with the Korean people, let me extend to you, Mr.
    President, and to your family our warmest welcome from the bottom of our
    hearts. Also, I look forward to you and Mrs. Bush to come and visit
    Korea freely when you have more time, Mr. President. I will always be
    ready to welcome my real friend whenever you come by. I will always be
    ready with open arms.
        President Bush. I think you're referring to my retirement.
    [Laughter] It's great to be back, and I can't thank you and Mrs. Kim enough for your gracious hospitality. And Laura and I and Barbara are
    looking forward to lunch.
        It's important for the people of your great country to know how much
    Americans value our friendship and our relationship and that we have a
    very important alliance and that it is being transformed to make sure
    that it's modern and effective. It's--alliances aren't stagnant; they've
    got to constantly reassess. And that's what we're doing in a way that
    will not only help defend the freedom here on the peninsula, Korean
    Peninsula, but also will help us meet the challenges of a new century.
        And I want to thank you for being a--you know, a forward-looking
    President. Transformation involves realigning our forces here in Korea,
    improving the interoperability of our forces, as well as preparing for
    Korea to take on greater operational responsibilities in times of
    conflict. Of course, the whole purpose of the alliance is to prevent the
    conflict from happening in the first place.
        We're working to speed your entry into the Visa Waiver Program, as
    you mentioned. The idea is to get it done by the end of this year. I
    think people are optimistic about that, Mr. President. And then I
    appreciate you bringing up the work-study program. It's an exciting
    opportunity for young Koreans to come to our country to learn and study
    and work. And I believe the best foreign policy for America is for

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    people to get to know our country firsthand. And I thank you for
    bringing up the program, and the responsible officials in our Government
    will work hard to bring it to a conclusion.
        We talked about the six-party talks. Yes, I'm pleased that the 5-
    megawatt reactor at Yongbyon was destroyed. That's then the ultimate
    verification, isn't it? We could see with our own eyes that they--the
    North Korean Government did what they said they were going to do. And
    now the question is, will they continue that type of accountability? And
    so we're in the process now of making sure the North Korean Government
    understands they have many more obligations under the six-party talks,
    and that we will deal with the North Koreans based upon the principle of
    action for action.
        I mean, I told the President I am concerned about North Korea's
    human rights record. I'm concerned about its uranium enrichment
    activities, as well as its nuclear testing and proliferation, its
    ballistic missile programs. And the best way to approach and answer
    those concerns is for there to be strong verification measures. And
    that's where we are in the six-party talks. And the choice is the leader
    of North Korea's to make. We made our choice:
    five nations bound together saying the same thing. And so we'll see what
    his decision is, Mr. President.
        I strongly support you--your Government's request to investigate
    last month's shooting of a South Korean tourist. And you spoke
    eloquently in our meeting about how you felt when you first learned
    about the incident and how the people of your good country must feel
    when they learned the news of this woman's death.
        We talked about our confronting global security challenges together.
    I do want to thank you very much for your contributions to two young
    democracies, Iraq and Afghanistan. The Korean people have made
    sacrifices to support troops there and sup-port other missions there,
    and they've made a difference. And I appreciate that very much. I also
    want to thank you very much for committing to send 350 troops to Lebanon
    as part of the U.N. mission.
        The United States and Korea are working to open up markets. We
    concluded a free trade agreement with Korea. And it's an important
    agreement for the United States. It's important for our businesses; it's
    important for our workers. And our Congress must get this agreement done
    and ratify it. I'm going to push hard for it, Mr. President.
        I am worried about the protectionist signals coming out of the U.S.
    Congress. And one way to kind of send a different message is for the
    Democratic leadership in the Congress to bring the--bring a couple of
    trade bills up, Colombia and Korea, and get some votes out there, and
    let Congress--people in Congress declare one way or the other whether
    they're for open markets and free and fair trade. And I can assure you,
    Mr. President, this administration is for free and fair trade and will
    continue to press hard for what I think is a very good agreement.
        Finally, I do want to say how much I appreciate your work on
    environmental challenges. Korea has been very constructive when it comes
    to climate change, and I want to thank you for your leadership on that
    issue. There's no doubt we need a long-term global goal for reducing
    emissions. We need midterm national goals and plans, and we need a lot
    of research and development to solve the problem in a way that enables
    us to say to our people, our economies can continue to grow and we'll be
    responsible stewards of the environment.
        I want to thank you once again for your grand hospitality. Our
    relationship is important, it's vital, and I believe it's strong. Thank
    you, sir.

    [[Page 1106]]

    South Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement/Island of Dokdo/Afghanistan

        Q. A question going out to President Lee. Mr. President, President
    Lee, you said that passage of the KORUS FTA will be one of the most
    important aspects of reviving the Korean economy. Do you, sir, despite
    the opposition within the U.S. Congress, do you expect the KORUS FTA to
    be ratified within the U.S. Congress? And if so, when do you expect the
    KORUS FTA to be ratified?
        Additionally, with regards to the Dokdo issue, we already see the
    conclusion of this issue, but, however, we still have the question of
    the naming issue because Dokdo is still referred to as Liancourt Rocks.
    What kind of dialogue did you have with President Bush during the summit
    meeting regarding Dokdo naming?
        Lastly, did President Bush request President Lee to dispatch troops
    to Afghanistan?
        President Bush. You sound like the American press. [Laughter]
        President Lee. As for the last question, I think President Bush
    should be answering that question.
        As for the KORUS FTA, it benefits both Korea and the United States,
    and this is my firm belief. It will help the Korean economy revive
    itself, and the KORUS FTA will be an opportunity for us to upgrade
    Korea's economy up a notch. It will improve our competitiveness
    internationally, improve our productivity, broaden our trade base. And
    also, through the broadened trade base, we will be able to create new
    jobs for Koreans. So these are all reasons why I fully support and why I
    believe that the KORUS FTA must pass.
        And also, the KORUS FTA has a lot of implications in terms of
    improving and strengthening the Korea-U.S. bilateral relationship. And
    so that is why I recognize the significance of the KORUS FTA.
        Today President Bush and I discussed and we agreed that we will
    continue to do our best so that the KORUS FTA will be able to pass by
    the end of this year. We promised each other we'll do our best. I will,
    on my part, continue to convince the Korea National Assembly for
    ratification, and President Bush said that he will continue his
    strenuous efforts to try to convince the U.S. Congress that they ratify
    the U.S.--the KORUS FTA.
        As for the Dokdo naming issue, this is not a Korea-U.S. issue, this
    is a Korea-Japan issue. So--well, I told President Bush--I thanked him,
    of course, for correcting swiftly the naming issue within the United
    States. But for the remaining issues, this is an issue that the Korean
    Government must take up in terms of the justifiability, the historical
    right that we have over Dokdo, and all the data that we have managed to
    accrue.
        And so we will continue our efforts to try to correct this and to
    tell the international community of our sovereign rights regarding this
    Dokdo issue. So we'll be very consistent and continuously let people
    know--and tell the international community and let them know that this
    is a sovereign land belonging to South Korea. We have Korean nationals
    living there, and we have exercised control over these islands for many
    years. And so this is our position, which has always been consistent.
    And so we have--we're confident that we'll be able to correct this.
        As for Afghanistan and sending Korean troops, I think, again,
    President Bush should be able to answer that. But I can tell you that we
    did discuss this issue.
        President Bush. We discussed it. I thanked the President for the
    contributions that Korea has made to Afghanistan. And the only thing I
    talked to him about was noncombat help. I asked him to consider as much
    noncombat help as possible to help this young democracy.

    China/Six-Party Talks

        Q. Thank you, both. To President Bush, China's crackdown on human
    rights is drawing intense scrutiny. People are being

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    harassed and jailed just for speaking their mind, trying to speak their
    mind. I know you say that you speak candidly with President Hu about
    this, but with all eyes on Beijing and the world watching, I'd like to
    ask you directly, what do you think of how China treats its people?
        And, President Lee, I'd like to ask you--you noted progress in the
    six-party talks. Do you think that North Korea will go along with
    verification of its nuclear programs? For people who think that this is
    just another go-around, why will this time be any different?
        President Bush. I've been meeting with Chinese leaders now for 7\1/
    2\ years; my message has been the same: You should not fear religious
    people in your society; as a matter of fact, religious people will make
    your society a better place; that you ought to welcome people being able
    to express their minds. And to the extent that people aren't able to do
    that and people aren't able to worship freely is--you know, I think is a
    mistake. And I explained it to him every single time.
        And the reason I'm going to the Olympics is twofold: one, to show my
    respect for the people of China; and two, to cheer on the U.S. team. And
    by the way, the order ought to be reversed as to why I may--went. I hope
    our team wins as many gold medals as possible, and if not win gold,
    silver, and if not silver, bronze.
        And this is an athletic event. But it's also an opportunity to say
    to the Chinese people, we respect your traditions; we respect your
    history. And as I said many times, I don't need the Olympics as an
    opportunity to express my views about religious freedom, since I have
    been doing it since I've been the President.
        President Lee. I think I need to answer part of the question. As for
    the six-party talks and the prospects for the six-party talks, I think
    there are many skeptics as to the future of the six-party talks. I think
    many people around the world look at the behavior of North Korea up
    until today and they say--and they wonder whether North Korea will
    faithfully carry out verification. However, we have a difficult
    opposition, and I think right now is a good time to really praise the
    leadership of President Bush for dealing with a very difficult opponent.
        And as to what kind of behavior North Korea will take, what's most
    important is--number one is that we must have a denuclearization of
    North Korea. So I will be patient, I will be consistent, and I will do
    my best. And I have faith and I am confident that we will be able to
    move on to the verification process and move on to the next phase of
    that. And we will try to--our best to make it complete, and I believe
    that North Korea must faithfully cooperate in the verification process
        So regardless of what North Korea has in mind, I believe it's
    important for the rest of the members of the six-party talks to continue
    pursuing our objective. And at times, we might have to wait; at times,
    we might be difficult, but we will be consistent.

    North Korea/Six-Party Talks

        Q. A question going out to His Excellency, President Bush. With
    regards to removing North Korea from the terrorism list, we understand
    that beginning on the 12th, North Korea might be able to be removed from
    the list. When do you expect, Mr. Bush, President Bush, that North Korea
    may be removed from the list? Are there any preconditions or is there
    anything that North Korea must do for them to be removed from the list
    of state sponsors of terrorism?
        President Bush. Yes. The 12th is the first opportunity where they
    may be lifted off the list. And, yes, they got a lot to do. They got to,
    like, show us a verification regime that we can trust. This is a step-
    by-step process.
        I don't know whether or not they're going to give up their weapons.
    I really don't know. I don't think either of us

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    knows. I know this, that the six-party talks is the best way to convince
    them to give up their weapons. I know there's a framework in place that
    will make it easier for those of us who care about this issue to work
    together to send a common message to the North Korea leader: You have a choice to make: You can verifiably do what you
    say you're going to do, or you'll continue to be the most sanctioned
    regime in the world.
        We have put out a step-by-step process to--as a way forward for the
    North Korean leader. This isn't a U.S. proposal;
    this is a five-party proposal. South Korea has been a very integral part
    of the process, and they will remain an integral part of the process.
    We're all at the table together, saying the same thing.
        And so part of the step-by-step was to say, okay, if you do the
    following things like you said you would do, you get off the terrorist
    list. That could conceivably happen, as you mentioned, on the 12th.
    However, it's going to require action on the leader of North Korea's part. It just doesn't automatically happen.
        We changed the way it used to be. It used to be that--okay, we'll
    give you something and hope that you end up responding. It's no longer
    that way. The six-party talks basically says, you have made a promise;
    once you fulfill your promise, then something will happen positively.
    And so I--we'll see. It's his choice to make as to whether or not he gets to come off the list. If he is off the list, I
    want to remind you that he'll still be--they will still be the most
    sanctioned country in the world.
        And so then the fundamental question is, do they want to continue on
    and try to change the status? Do they want to try to change their
    isolation? Do they want to enter the community of nations? Do they want
    to be viewed as a peaceful country? And so there's a series of steps
    that we've all agreed to, including North Korea, that it's up to them to
    make the decision as to how they'll proceed.

    North Korea

        Q. Yes----
        President Bush. Yes, Paul [Paul Wiseman, USA Today]. [Laughter]
        Q. I was wondering, do you think that North Korea has fundamentally
    changed from being a member of the axis of evil a few years ago?
        President Bush. That's to be determined. The human rights abuses
    inside the country still exist and persist. The North Korean leader has yet to fully verify the extent to which he has
    had a highly enriched uranium program. There's still more steps to be
    done on the plutonium program. So in order to get off the list, the axis
    of evil list, then the North Korean leader is going to have to make
    certain decisions. And that's all part of the six-party talks.
        And again, I can't predict the North Korean leader's decisionmaking. I don't know what he's going to do. But I
    do know that the best way to solve this issue is for five other nations
    to be saying the exact same thing.
        And there has been progress. I mean, one thing is for certain, that
    he did blow up the cooling tower. That was--
    that's verifiable because we all saw it. And it's--that was a positive
    step. And I--you know, I think all of us appreciated that positive step,
    but there's more steps to be taken. And my hope is that the axis of evil
    list no longer exists. That's my hope, for the sake of peace. And it's
    my hope for--you know, for the sake of our children.
        Thank you very much for your attention. Thank you for your
    questions. Why don't you go find a shade tree to stand under? [Laughter]

    Note: The President's news conference began at 11:05 a.m. at the Blue
    House. In his remarks, the President referred to Kim Yoon-ok, wife of
    President Lee; Chairman Kim Jong Il of North Korea; South Korean tourist
    Park Wang-ja, who was killed by a

    [[Page 1109]]

    North Korean soldier on July 11; and President Hu Jintao of China.
    President Lee and some reporters spoke in Korean, and their remarks were
    translated by an interpreter.