U.S. President Barack Obama (L) meets with his South Korean counterpart Lee Myung-bak (R) at South Korea's presidential Blue House in Seoul, capital of South Korea, on Nov. 19, 2009. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
SEOUL, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama met with his South Korean counterpart Lee Myung-bak on Thursday, and reached an agreement to keep up with the Lee-proposed "grand bargain" for the DPRK's (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) nuclear issue and to move forward on the pending bilateral free trade agreement.
During a one-on-one meeting held for an hour, the two leaders also dealt with other topics, such as the South Korea-U.S. alliance and global issues, reaffirming their close relationship.
"Today, we held more in-depth, meaningful dialogue than ever," Lee said at a joint press conference after the bilateral summit.
"In addition, we agreed to keep discussing on concrete measures to further develop bilateral ties, confirming that the two countries are having 'the best' relationship ever at the moment," Lee added.
After the summit, the two leaders held a joint press conference, where the leaders said in one voice that they held shared views on the DPRK's denuclearization.
"With respect to the DPRK and its nuclear program, we reiterated our firm stances over the DPRK's complete, verifiable denuclearization through the six-party talks," Lee said.
"We have completely agreed on the need for the 'grand bargain,' which I had earlier proposed, to resolve the DPRK's nuclear issue, and we will closely work to follow up with detailed measures," Lee also said.
The grand bargain proposal refers to a plan calling on the DPRK to abandon its nuclear programs "in a single step," in return for security, diplomatic and economic incentives.
Obama echoed Lee's remarks, saying "President Lee and I are in full agreement on a common approach going forward."
Although the U.S. president did not utter the term "great bargain," his remarks that his view was in line with that of the South Korean president could be interpreted as an emphasis on firm ties between South Korea and the U.S. in the nuke issue, said Kim Yong-hyun, professor at Dong-kuk University.
The two leaders also called for the DPRK's return to the six-party talks as early as possible and promised to closely cooperate with other members of the talks, said Lee.
President Obama also announced that Stephen Bosworth, special U.S. representative for North Korea policy, will visit Pyongyang on Dec. 8 for bilateral talks.
U.S. President Barack Obama (L) shakes hands with his South Korean counterpart Lee Myung-bak at South Korea's presidential Blue House in Seoul, capital of South Korea, on Nov. 19, 2009. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
Local experts, including Kim, welcomed the announcement, and especially the fact that it came during Obama's stay in Seoul.
Kim and others expressed hope that Bosworth's visit to Pyongyang may become a breakthrough in the stalled six-way talks, bringing the country back to the negotiating table.
With respect to the pending bilateral FTA, Lee said "President Obama and I reaffirmed the economic, strategic importance of the South Korea-U.S. FTA, and we agreed to move forward on the deal together."
Obama, saying he is a "stronger believer" in the benefits of the FTA with South Korea, introduced concerns within the U.S. "around the incredible trade imbalances that have grown over the last several decades."
The U.S. president, however, said one of his goals was "to make sure... that American people, American businesses, American workers recognize that we have to look at each agreement and each country on its own merits."
Meanwhile, when asked whether South Korea is willing to open its automobile market to get done with the deal, Lee said that he sought an opportunity to re-discuss the matter with the United States.
"Such a view came as I had sufficient communication with President Obama, and I want to push for it in an aggressive manner as it would benefit both of the countries," Lee said.
With respect to Lee's remarks, South Korean media were heated as it could imply that South Korea may go through negotiation process with the United States again.
Later, however, Seoul's presidential office denied such speculation, saying it did not mean renegotiation.
"What President Lee meant cannot be interpreted as renegotiation. Rather, it means that we could have an opportunity to listen to the U.S. side again as the auto issue is hampering the ratification," Kim Jong-hoon, South Korea's chief negotiator, said.
According to Kwak Su-jong, analyst at the Samsung Economic Research Institute, the president's remarks meant that South Korea could talk again with the U.S. to facilitate the ratification process as the U.S. president seeks parliamentary approval as early as in the beginning of 2010.
"Although the clauses related to other issues cannot be modified, a revision in the terms related to auto industry may be revised and complemented under a re-discussion process," Kwak said.
Lee and Obama also shared views on global issues, such as the G-20 summit, climate changes, green growth, nuclear non-proliferation, and antiterrorism, according to Lee.
In particular, the two summits discussed on Seoul's hosting theG-20 summit meeting in November, 2010, agreeing to cooperate on the event.
"As we appreciate Obama's efforts to build a denuclearized world, South Korea will participate in the nuclear security summit to be held next April," Lee said.
The South Korean society, including the political circle, showed mixed reactions towards the outcome of the Lee-Obama meeting.
While the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) highly appraised the summit, opposition parties said it was a coreless meeting just held for meeting's sake.
"The two leaders have drawn meaningful results on urgent issues on the Korean Peninsula and in the East Asian region," said Cho Hae-jin, spokesman for the GNP, said.
However, the opposition Democratic Party (DP) said it was disappointed in what came out of the meeting as it was no different from the earlier bilateral summit in June.
The Liberty Forward Party also called the summit "abstract," saying it was just full of rhetorics without concrete measures.
The South Korean media, on the other hand, were mostly focused on the president's remarks that the country may talk again with the U.S. on the FTA due to auto industry issues.
Amid diverse speculations on what the president actually meant, the presidential office made clear that there will be no renegotiation.
However, another session of dialogue seems unavoidable and it may bring a revision on the auto industry-related clause, formed in "side agreements," said local daily Kyunghyang.
"As we are too much concerned on the ratification, we may have to give in to the U.S. demands on auto industry," Lee Hae-young, professor at Hanshin University, said, expressing worries on the aftermath.
Evaluations on the two leaders' agreement over the denuclearization issue conflicted as well, with some calling it "meaningful" as it came amid escalating inter-Korean tensions while others saying "it lacked action plans."
Leaving heated controversy behind, the U.S. president flew back home from the U.S. air base in Osan, wrapping up his 20-hour-long stay in Seoul.
SEOUL, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said Thursday, with respect to the bilateral free trade pact, his country may talk again with the U.S. if the auto trade issue stands in the way. Full story
SEOUL, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama expressed hope to work out details on the pending free trade agreement (FTA) with South Korea, eyeing its ratification as early as next year, South Korean media reported Thursday, quoting the president's interview with a U.S. broadcaster.
"We are going to be discussing this with South Korea. I want to get the deal done," Obama was quoted as telling Fox News, when asked if he thinks the South Korea-U.S. FTA would be passed in Congress. Full story
