Korea, U.S. agree on strategic agenda, USFK deployment flexibility

By Lee Dong-min

WASHINGTON, Jan. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States set the agendas Thursday for bolstering their relations as strategic allies, ranging from the spread of democracy to preventing transnational pandemic disease.
In a joint statement following the inaugural session of talks on a new strategic partnership, the two nations together urged North Korea to return promptly to the six-party nuclear negotiations and called for an eventual permanent peace regime on the divided Korean Peninsula.

South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice also announced agreement on "strategic flexibility" of American troops stationed in South Korea, a policy allowing U.S. forces to swiftly move to and from host nations to areas of conflict or of other military needs.

The key initiatives set down for future strategic dialogue include "cooperation and coordination of efforts to promote freedom, democratic institutions and human rights worldwide, cooperation on fighting terrorism, strategies to fight transnational pandemic disease, and developing approaches to multilateral peacekeeping and to disaster management."

At a regional level, the two countries agreed to "maintaining a strong U.S.-ROK alliance to contribute to peace and stability in Northeast Asia, leading possibly to an eventual regional multinational mechanism for security cooperation." ROK, or Republic of Korea, is South Korea's official name.

Ban and Rice also emphasized economic ties between their governments, discussing "ways to further deepen bilateral economic cooperation."
Trade officials of the two countries have suggested that an agreement is imminent on starting negotiations for a free trade agreement.

On strategic flexibility, the statement reflects both the needs of the U.S. and concerns of South Korea.

"The ROK, as an ally, fully understands the rationale for the transformation of the U.S. global military strategy, and respects the necessity for strategic flexibility of the U.S. forces in the ROK," the statement reads.

"In the implementation of strategic flexibility, the U.S. respects the ROK position that it shall not be involved in a regional conflict in Northeast Asia against the will of the Korean people."

On the North Korean nuclear issue, the two ministers reaffirmed that Pyongyang "must return promptly" to the six-party talks and that the focus of future discussions in Beijing must be on steps to implement the Sept. 19 joint statement.

Thursday's talks, formally known as the Strategic Consultation for Allied Partnership, are the first of their kind following an agreement at the South Korea-U.S. summit in November last year. Although Seoul and Washington have a wide range of bilateral channels, the point of the new strategic dialogue is for the two countries to commit to regular meetings every year.

Kim Sook, director-general of the North American affairs bureau at the South Korean Foreign Ministry, said there will be follow-up negotiations at the deputy-minister level.

U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns is expected to visit Seoul around April for these discussions, Kim said.

Ban and Rice are expected to hold a second round of the strategic dialogue later this year.

"We have taken our relationship to outside of the Korean Peninsula to the level of Northeast Asia, and even to the level of the world," Kim said about the meaning of the strategic dialogue.

U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Ban and Rice had a "good discussion."

"They also talked about issues in the region, South Korean-Japanese relations, South Korean-Chinese relations, how the foreign minister viewed those relationships," he told a daily briefing.

"They touched upon the six-party talks as well.  They talked about human rights issues in North Korea."

Thursday's talks took on added meaning with the just-completed visit of Pyongyang's top leader, Kim Jong-il, to China.

Kim told Chinese President Hu Jintao that he was still committed to resolving the nuclear issue peacefully through dialogue, and that he was committed to implementing the Sept. 19 agreement.

The agreement reached at the September six-party talks says North Korea will give up its existing nuclear weapons and programs in exchange for diplomatic recognition and financial assistance.

South and North Korea, the U.S., China, Russia and Japan are members of the six-party talks hosted by Beijing.

Kim said the two countries see the North Korean leader's visit as "positive" and hope it will induce reform and openness in North Korea and lead to an early resumption of the six-party talks.

Going into the talks, Ban expressed a degree of optimism that the nuclear negotiations may be able to reopen soon.

"We need to look at closely what Chairman Kim Jong-il of North Korea discussed with Chinese leaders recently," Ban said during a brief photo session.

Rice, asked about the nuclear stalemates in North Korea and Iran, said Seoul and Washington "both urge the North Koreans to come back to the talks without conditions."

Ban said South Korea, as a country facing a nuclear -capable neighbor, has no other choice "but to express our deep concern" about Iran.

"At this time, our preference is still that this Iranian issue should be resolved through negotiation if there is any room left," he said.

"If there is no other choice... we will support the referral of this issue to the (U.N.) Security Council."

ldm@yna.co.kr (END)