[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 41, Number 45 (Monday, November 14, 2005)]
[Pages 1684-1685]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Interview With the Korean Broadcasting System

November 8, 2005

Six-Party Talks

    Kwang Chool Lee. Mr. President, thank you for granting this 
interview with KBS, Korean Broadcasting System. Mr. President, today a 
new round in the six-party talks starts in Beijing. Do you have any 
deadline for progress in the talks and for North Korea to dismantle its 
nuclear program?
    The President. I guess I would define my feelings this way: I think 
the world is watching very carefully whether or not we--that's six 
countries--are able to achieve a noble and peaceful objective, which is 
a Korean Peninsula which does not have any nuclear weapons.
    And thus far, there has been some progress, but it's been mainly 
talk. And my hope, of course, is that we begin to see action, results. 
And those results, of course, would be that there would be a verifiable 
dismantling of nuclear weapons and the programs required to make nuclear 
weapons. We will continue to work with the parties to move the process 
beyond rhetoric to reality.

Yasukuni Shrine

    Mr. Lee. But recently the relations amongst China, Japan, and Korea 
are antagonized by Mr. Koizumi's visit to Yasukuni Shrine, which honors 
World War II criminals. Mr. President, don't you think this is an 
unnecessary provocation to other Asian countries tortured by these war 
criminals?
    The President. I am aware of the friction caused by the Prime 
Minister of Japan's decision. I believe a useful role for me, as someone 
who is friendly with the three leaders involved, is to remind people 
that it is best to put the past behind and move forward in the future. 
And I understand the sentiments of the South Korean people; they're 
still angry about the past. And so there's a natural reaction, when they 
view a decision made by the Prime Minister.
    I'm hopeful that people will be able to see what happened between 
U.S. and Japanese relations. We're close, like we're close with South 
Korea, and yet my dad, for example, was a fighter--a Navy fighter 
against the Japanese. In other words, with hard work, we can get the 
past behind us, and that would be my hope when I discuss this issue with 
the respective leaders.

South Korea-U.S. Relations

    Mr. Lee. Mr. President, recently many Koreans and Americans have 
become anxious about the relations between our two countries. What are 
your expectations of Korea in this changing relations, and what does 
U.S. offer to Korea in this changed environment?

[[Page 1685]]

    The President. Well, I appreciate that question. Look, I think that 
relations are better than some people want to say they are. As a matter 
of fact, I know relations between our Governments is good. We've done 
some--we've made some difficult decisions together and have acted 
together. For example, troops in Iraq--that was difficult. That was a 
difficult decision for your President. It was a difficult decision for 
me, as a matter of fact, to commit troops. And yet, we're working 
together to bring democracy, and therefore peace, to a troubled part of 
the world.
    We had a base realignment issue that we worked out with the South 
Korean Government. That's not an easy issue, but it's a necessary issue 
that the Government--South Korean Government thought was necessary and I 
agreed was necessary. And we did so in a cordial way.
    We've got a lot of trade. I mean, the trade between South Korea and 
the United States is substantial. There is an opportunity down the road 
for us to put a free trade agreement in. Both countries are going to 
have to work hard to make that happen. There's a lot of exchange of 
people back and forth between our countries.
    So there's a lot of contact, a lot of commerce, and a lot of 
security measures we're taking together. I think the thing to do is to 
keep advancing the relationship and working to make it more mature so 
that we can work together to keep the peace.
    Mr. Lee. Mr. President, you mentioned free trade. And on your recent 
trip to South America, you stressed the importance of free trade. Will 
the FTA be on the main agenda when you visit Korea?
    The President. Oh, I think--I'm not sure what you mean by ``main 
agenda,'' but it's certainly going to be an item we discuss. And you 
know, these agreements are important, but so is a more global agreement, 
called the Doha round of the WTO. And of course, I'll be discussing that 
as well, not only with President Roh but at the APEC meeting that South 
Korea is so kindly hosting.
    Mr. Lee. Thank you, Mr. President, for sharing your views.
    The President. Well, thank you very much. I'm looking forward to 
going back to your beautiful country. And I want to thank the Government 
of South Korea and the people of South Korea for hosting me and Laura as 
we return.
    Mr. Lee. Thank you, sir.
    The President. Yes, sir.

Note: The interview was taped at 1:27 p.m. in the Map Room at the White 
House for later broadcast. In his remarks, the President referred to 
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan; and President Roh Moo-hyun of 
South Korea. A tape was not available for verification of the content of 
this interview.