Seoul, Washington agree on pushing for FTA, 'grand bargain'
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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.
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US 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] |
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.
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."
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