South Korea's new President Lee Myung-bak vowed yesterday to work more closely with Washington to denuclearize North Korea, insisting the move would not raise inter-Korean tensions, a US envoy said.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice heard the pledge from Lee after his inauguration in Seoul, nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill said as she began a tour of Asia aimed at reviving six-party negotiations to disarm North Korea.
"President Lee said he would do all he could to strengthen US-RoK [Republic of Korea] cooperation on the six-party process," Hill told reporters after Rice and Lee met at the snow-covered presidential palace.
"He said that a strong US-RoK relationship does not mean that they would increase tensions with North Korea. On the contrary, a strong US-RoK relationship is good for the inter-Korean dialogue," Hill said.
Rice's visit was seen as a way to overcome US differences with the outgoing administration of president Roh Moo-hyun, and ultimately boost six-party talks aimed at scrapping the North's nuclear weapons programs.
talks
The six-party talks, which began in 2003, group the two Koreas, the US, China, Russia and Japan.
Roh sought a policy of "balanced diplomacy" by lessening Seoul's dependence on the US.
But he also pushed for a free trade deal with Washington, which is awaiting ratification by the legislatures of both countries, and sent South Korean troops to Iraq and Afghanistan.
In brief remarks to the media after attending the inauguration ceremony and meeting foreign minister-designate Yu Myung-hwan, Rice said: "As much as we share strategic interests, we certainly share common values."
In his inaugural speech, Lee pledged firmer ties with the US.
"We will work to develop and further strengthen traditional friendly relations with the United States into a future-oriented partnership," Lee said.
"Based on the deep mutual trust that exists between the two peoples, we will also strengthen our strategic alliance with the United States," he said.
firmer line
Lee, 66, has also promised a firmer line with North Korea, which staged a nuclear test in October 2006, linking Seoul's aid more closely to disarmament.
In his speech, Lee expressed willingness to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and said inter-Korean relations must become more productive.
"Our attitude will be pragmatic, not ideological," he said.
In an interview in December, Rice declined to rule out a visit to Pyongyang if there were further progress on denuclearization.
But US officials say her current tour will not include a visit to Pyongyang, where the New York Philharmonic arrived yesterday for a landmark concert aimed at improving ties between the communist nation and the US.
During her stops in Seoul as well as in Beijing and Tokyo, Rice will search for ways to end an impasse over the six-nation disarmament deal.
The US says Pyongyang must fully answer suspicions that it bought equipment for a covert uranium enrichment bomb-making program. The North denies the existence of such a program.
Also see: Lee seeks more private investment
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