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SUBJECT: PRESS BULLETIN - January 15, 2009 
 
Opinions/Editorials 
 
¶1. ROK-U.S. FTA on Shaky Ground 
 (Dong-a Ilbo, January 15, 2009, Page 27) 
¶2. North Korea's Moves Ahead of the Launch of the Obama 
Administration 
(Hankook Ilbo, January 15, 2009, Page 39) 
¶3. Expectations for U.S. Diplomacy in the Obama Era 
(Hankyoreh Shinmun, January 15, 2009, Page 27) 
¶4. N. Korea Misreads Obama 
(Chosun Ilbo, January 15, 2009, Page 27) 
 
 
Features 
 
¶5. Clinton: Obama Opposes Korea-US FTA 
(Dong-a Ilbo, January 15, 2009, Front Page) 
¶6. U.S. to Apply 'Smart Power' Tactics to North Korea Policy 
(Hankyoreh Shinmun, January 15, 2009, Page 4) 
 
 
Top Headlines 
 
Chosun Ilbo 
Ruling GNP Seeks to Ease Development Restrictions 
near Military Airports 
 
JoongAng Ilbo 
ROKG to Spend 540 Billion Won 
to Develop Eco-Friendly "Green Business" 
 
Dong-a Ilbo 
Analysis: a Mere 0.1 Percent of Internet Users Responsible 
for Most Malicious and Defamatory Postings 
 
Hankook Ilbo, All TVs 
Job Growth Shrinks for First Time in Five Years 
 
Hankyoreh Shinmun 
National Tax Service Chief Allegedly Hung Out 
with Close Associates of Rep. Lee Sang-deuk, Elder Brother 
of President Lee Myung-bak, for Career Favors 
 
Segye Ilbo 
Lawmakers above the Law: Lawmakers Involved in Violent Clashes at 
National Assembly Ignore Prosecutors' Summons 
to Appear for Questioning 
 
Seoul Shinmun 
ROKG Seeks to Designate Pyeongtaek and Changwon, where Beleaguered 
Ssangyong Motor Plants are Located, 
as "Employment Promotion Areas" 
 
 
International News 
 
¶1. Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton, during her Jan. 13 
Senate confirmation hearing, pledged to use "smart power," making 
full use of available political, economic, military, diplomatic, 
legal and cultural resources. (All) She also referred to U.S.-Japan 
relations as a "cornerstone," while calling relations with the ROK a 
"partnership," an indication that she might place more value on 
relations with Japan. (Chosun) 
 
¶2. Furthermore, Secretary of State-designate Clinton indicated the 
need to renegotiate the KORUS FTA by saying that there are some 
provisions in the KORUS FTA that failed to secure fair trade 
conditions between the two countries. (All) 
 
¶3. Regarding the North Korean nuclear issue, she stated: "If North 
Korea does not meet its obligations, we should move quickly to 
re-impose sanctions that have been waived, and consider new 
restrictions, going forward." (Dong-a, Hankook, Segye) 
 
¶4. According to the Jan. 14 issue of Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun, North 
Korea is establishing a collective leadership system in preparation 
for any unforeseeable changes in its leader Kim Jong-il's health. 
Jang Sung-taek, the North Korean leader's brother-in-law and 
director of the administrative department of the North Korean 
Workers' Party, will head the collective system, with leader Kim's 
eldest son Jong-nam as the titular head of state. (Chosun, Segye) 
 
 
Media Analysis 
 
Secretary of State-designate Clinton Testimony 
The Jan. 13 Senate confirmation hearing for Secretary of 
State-designate Hillary Clinton received prominent coverage.  The 
ROK media mostly focused on her statements regarding the North 
Korean nuclear issue and the KORUS FTA.  She was widely quoted as 
saying: "Our goal is to end North Korea's nuclear programs. 
Normalized relations with North Korea will not be possible without 
the complete and verifiable elimination of North Korea's nuclear 
programs, and an accounting for the North's past plutonium 
production, uranium enrichment activities and proliferation 
activities.  If North Korea does not meet its obligations, we should 
move quickly to re-impose sanctions that have been waived, and 
consider new restrictions, going forward."  Regarding the KORUS FTA, 
she was quoted as asserting: "There are some provisions in the KORUS 
FTA that failed to secure fair trade conditions between the two 
countries, and these provisions need to be renegotiated to ensure 
fair bilateral trade practice in the future." 
 
Most of the ROK media also reported that Secretary of 
State-designate Clinton pledged to reform diplomacy by using "smart 
power," making full use of available political, economic, military, 
diplomatic, legal and cultural resources.  She was also cited as 
indicating her intention to pursue cooperation with other countries 
rather than the unilateral hard-line policies of the Bush 
Administration.  In a related development, conservative Chosun Ilbo 
took note of Ms. Clinton's description of U.S.-Japan relations as a 
"cornerstone," while calling U.S. relations with the ROK a 
"partnership," and interpreted this as indicting that she would 
place more value on relations with Japan. 
 
Conservative Chosun Ilbo editorialized: "North Korea claimed in its 
Jan. 13 Foreign Ministry statement that the normalization of North 
Korea-U.S relations should come before the denuclearization of the 
Korean Peninsula.  Given Ms. Clinton's remarks, however, it is clear 
that North Korea is barking up the wrong tree.  Even though the 
Obama Administration has made clear its intention to change U.S. 
foreign policy, Pyongyang should realize that the change will be 
pursued based on the continuity of U.S. foreign policy." 
Conservative Dong-a Ilbo's editorial argued: "The KORUS FTA was a 
strategic choice to beef up bilateral ties in politics, security and 
economy.  The Obama Administration must not betray its ally's trust 
in order to support its auto industry, which has lost its 
competitive edge."  Moderate Hankook Ilbo wrote in an editorial: 
"The stance that Ms. Clinton showed at her confirmation hearing was 
not different from that of the Bush Administration.  This means that 
contrary to Pyongyang's expectations, negotiations between North 
Korea and the Obama Administration may not go smoothly.  After all, 
progress in negotiations to dismantle North Korea's nuclear programs 
and normalize U.S.-North Korea ties hinges on mutual trust between 
the U.S. and North Korea.  Both sides have no choice but to 
implement their promises faithfully on the principle of 'action for 
action.'"  Left-leaning Hankyoreh Shinmun's editorial stated: 
"Hillary Clinton gave high priority to the North Korean nuclear 
issue amid speculation that the incoming U.S. administration might 
put the nuclear issue on the backburner, overwhelmed by the Mumbai 
terror attacks and the Gaza conflict.  She may have calculated that 
the new administration could quickly put an end to the North Korean 
nuclear issue, based on the progress made in negotiations with North 
Korea.  She also showed her willingness to meet directly with the 
North Korean leader.  Given all this, depending on the communist 
state's response, rapid progress could be made on the nuclear issue 
and relations between the U.S. and North Korea.  Regarding the KORUS 
FTA, the U.S. has taken the position that it will not accept the 
KORUS FTA without renegotiation.  Since the trade deal is also 
unsatisfactory to the ROK, the government should not make more 
concessions to the U.S. through renegotiations.  The ROKG should no 
longer stick to the trade deal.  Shift in policy toward North Korea 
and giving up the KORUS FTA are the way for the ROK to build a smart 
relationship with the new U.S. administration that pursues 'smart 
power.'" 
 
North Korea 
Chosun Ilbo gave play to a Jan. 14 report by Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun 
saying that North Korea is establishing a collective leadership 
system in preparation for any unforeseeable changes in its leader 
Kim Jong-il's health.  Citing a senior U.S. intelligence official, 
the report went on to say that Jang Sung-taek, the North Korean 
leader's brother-in-law and director of the administrative 
department of the North Korean Workers' Party, will head the 
collective system, with leader Kim's eldest son Jong-nam as the 
titular head of state. 
 
 
Opinions/Editorials 
 
ROK-U.S. FTA on Shaky Ground 
(Dong-a Ilbo, January 15, 2009, Page 27) 
 
On whether the U.S. should ratify the free trade agreement with the 
ROK, U.S. Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton said 
amendment or further negotiations will likely be necessary.  Citing 
U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's firm objection to the agreement, 
Clinton backed her opinion in a written answer submitted for her 
confirmation hearing.  She said Washington will seek renegotiation 
only if Seoul agrees to, but the Korean government has repeatedly 
ruled out renegotiation.  Thus, the incoming U.S. administration is 
certain to put pressure on the ROK. 
 
The U.S. Democratic Party, which has the backing of auto unions, has 
long been against the deal.  Obama branded the accord as full of 
flaws and unfair clauses to American automakers in May last year 
before winning his party's Presidential nomination.  He spoke of the 
deal throughout his campaign, often giving a misleading impression 
that foreign automakers, including the ROK's, are to blame for the 
crisis in the U.S. auto industry.  The American Federation of Labor 
and Congress of Industrial Organizations, the biggest U.S. labor 
group, has urged the new administration not to endorse the free 
trade deal unless auto-related articles are revised and the ROK's 
labor practices are improved. 
 
The Obama Administration, however, must find the cause of the U.S. 
auto industry's demise not from outside but within.  Why is it 
trying to hide the decline in consumer demand for big cars with low 
fuel efficiency and the weakening of the U.S. automakers' finances 
due to increasing welfare costs for union members and their 
families?  Who should be responsible for the dwindling sales of U.S. 
 
cars, whose performance and design are inferior to Japanese and 
European models? 
 
The free trade deal was a strategic choice to beef up bilateral ties 
in politics, security and economy.  The Obama Administration must 
not betray its ally's trust based on the excuse of supporting its 
auto industry, which has lost its competitive edge. 
 
The Korean government became aware of the new U.S. government's 
drive toward renegotiation six months ago, or at the very least, 
three months ago.  ROK Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan reported to 
the National Assembly in October last year that Washington might 
demand revisions to auto clauses if Obama was elected president. 
The government urged the Assembly to take preemptive action and 
ratify the accord before the U.S. Congress, but now says it will 
handle the agreement quickly after the Obama Administration takes 
office.  The lawmakers' dereliction of duty should be blamed for 
U.S. pressure to have the agreement revised. 
 
* This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version. 
 
 
North Korea's Moves Ahead of the Launch of the Obama Administration 
(Hankook Ilbo, January 15, 2009, Page 39) 
 
On January 13 alone, North Korea announced three external measures. 
It allowed the ROK delegation to visit North Korea to discuss the 
possible purchase of unused fuel rods at Yongbyon nuclear 
facilities, released a Japanese national who has been held for five 
years on drug smuggling charges, and issued a Foreign Ministry 
statement saying that denuclearization should be achieved through 
the U.S.-North Korea diplomatic normalization.  These meaningful 
steps seem designed to send a positive message to the incoming Obama 
Administration or to pave the way for negotiations with the new 
USG. 
 
The Foreign Ministry statement came around the time when the Senate 
confirmation hearing was held for Secretary of State-designate 
Hilary Clinton.  The purpose (of issuing the statement) was for 
North Korea, aware that Clinton will reveal the principle and 
direction of the U.S.'s North Korea policy, to emphasize the 
diplomatic normalization talks.  In the statement, North Korea 
repeatedly stressed the reasons why it cannot dismantle its nuclear 
programs before the U.S.-North Korea relations are normalized. 
However, it is doubtful whether the statement was well-received. 
 
The stance that Clinton showed at her confirmation hearing was a far 
cry from North Korea's position.  She indicated that it is 
impossible to normalize the relations with Pyongyang until North 
Korea removes its nuclear weapons development programs in a complete 
and verifiable way.  The position that the three key issues - 
plutonium production, uranium enrichment, and nuclear proliferation 
activities - should be clearly looked into is not different from 
that of the Bush Administration.  This means that, contrary to 
Pyongyang's expectations, negotiations between North Korea and the 
Obama Administration may not go smoothly.  After all, progress in 
negotiations to dismantle North Korea's nuclear programs and 
normalize U.S.-North Korea ties hinges on mutual trust between the 
U.S. and North Korea.  Both sides have no choice but to implement 
their promises faithfully on the principle of "action for action." 
 
It is encouraging that North Korea accepted a visit by Hwang 
Joon-kook, ROK Deputy Chief Nuclear Envoy and Director General of 
the ROK Foreign Ministry's North Korean Affairs Bureau.  Although 
the visit is part of the Six-Party Talks, it is the first trip by an 
ROK delegation to Pyongyang since the launch of the Lee Myung-bak 
Administration.  The main purpose of the visit is to examine the 
conditions for the purchase of unused nuclear fuel rods from North 
Korea, but we expect this visit to help break the deadlock in 
inter-Korean relations.  Considering the situation on the Korean 
Peninsula, there is a limit to North Korea's strategy of seeking 
progress in its relations with the U.S. while maintaining its 
hard-line stance toward the ROK and, as a result, Pyongyang also 
needs to communicate with the ROK.  For its part, the ROKG should 
now stop waiting for North Korea (to change its attitude) and come 
up with measures to break the ice. 
 
 
Expectations for U.S. Diplomacy in the Obama Era 
(Hankyoreh Shinmun, January 15, 2009, Page 27) 
 
At her confirmation hearing before the United States Senate, 
Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton said in no uncertain 
terms that diplomacy will be the center of U.S. foreign policy, 
leading some people to hope for the possibility of new international 
relations.  "We must use what has been called 'smart power,' the 
full range of tools at our disposal -- diplomatic, economic, 
military, political, legal, and cultural -- picking the right tool, 
or combination of tools, for each situation," she said in her 
prepared statement, saying also that smart power will be the 
"vanguard" of foreign policy. 
 
"To create more friends and fewer enemies, we can't just win wars. 
We must find common ground and common purpose with other peoples and 
nations so that together we can overcome hatred, violence, 
lawlessness, and despair...  I believe that foreign policy must be 
based on a marriage of principles and pragmatism, not rigid 
ideology, (and) on facts and evidence, not emotion or prejudice." 
 
Clinton made it clear the new U.S. administration will depart from 
the unilateralism, so dependent on military strength, of the Bush 
Administration and pursue instead a policy that places importance on 
dialogue and compromise, and we expect this will bring a new tone to 
international relations.   It would also be desirable for the United 
States to choose pragmatism over the ideological slant of the 
neocons, and to seek common denominators instead of unilaterally 
pushing its own values. 
 
Nonetheless, we still feel compelled to express our concern over her 
views on the Israeli attack on Gaza.  The incursion has gone beyond 
mere self-defense.  The humanitarian situation for Palestinians has 
reached horrific extremes.  But Clinton still invoked her sympathy 
for Israel's right to defend itself and spoke as if the suffering of 
regular Israelis and the suffering of regular Palestinians are on a 
par with each other.  She demonstrated how the foreign policy of the 
Obama Administration, too, is not free from Jewish influence. 
 
When it came to North Korea, Clinton said the United States needs to 
"act with urgency to prevent proliferation."  Though some have 
predicted that the North Korea issue would fall lower on the 
priority list due to the recent terrorism in Mumbai and the 
situation in Gaza, the new U.S. administration does seem to have 
determined that resolving the nuclear issue with Pyongyang at an 
early stage is possible, based on the negotiations that have gone on 
so far.  That being the case, Seoul's response to the issue has to 
change, too.  Just waiting around will not be enough. 
 
Regarding the KORUS FTA, the U.S. has taken the position that it 
will not accept the KORUS FTA without renegotiation.  Since the 
trade deal is also unsatisfactory to the ROK, the government should 
not make more concessions to the U.S. through renegotiations.  The 
ROKG should no longer stick to the trade deal.  Shift in policy 
toward North Korea and giving up the KORUS FTA are the way for the 
ROK to build a smart relationship with the new U.S. administration 
that pursues 'smart power.'" 
 
* We have compared the English version on the website with the 
Korean version and added the last paragraph to make them identical. 
 
 
¶N. Korea Misreads Obama 
(Chosun Ilbo, January 15, 2009, Page 27) 
 
At her Senate Confirmation hearing on Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of 
State-designate Hillary Clinton said her goal was to see the end of 
North Korea's nuclear program and promised to "act with urgency." 
She added it would be impossible for Washington to normalize ties 
with North Korea unless the communist country dismantles its nuclear 
program in a complete and verifiable manner. 
 
Clinton said the U.S. government would have to reinstate sanctions 
and consider new ones if the North does not abide by terms it has 
agreed to in scrapping its nuclear weapons program.  She promised to 
use both the Six-Party Talks and direct dialogue with North Korea, 
and declared herself open to meeting any foreign leader at a place 
and time of her choice. 
 
This is the first time a senior official in the Obama 
Administration, which will be inaugurated on Jan. 20, has revealed 
the official position on the North Korean nuclear standoff.  The 
strategy revealed in Clinton's comments is to seek dialogue with the 
ultimate goal of scrapping of the North's nuclear program, but both 
carrot and stick can be used to achieve this goal. 
 
Clinton rebutted misunderstandings and speculation about the new 
North Korea policy. Regarding views that the Obama Administration is 
willing to recognize North Korea as a nuclear state and focus more 
on preventing proliferation than nuclear dismantlement, Clinton said 
the North's plutonium and enriched uranium programs and nuclear 
proliferation must be scrutinized.  Human rights abuses must also be 
addressed and resolved, she said, touching on the subject the North 
is most sensitive about.  In short, the Obama Administration will 
not be soft on North Korea. 
 
But the North Korean Foreign Ministry statement on Tuesday said 
Pyongyang's principle was to seek nuclear dismantlement through 
normalized relations with Washington, rather than to improve 
relations by scrapping its nuclear weapons program.  It is saying 
relations with the U.S. must improve first to make nuclear 
dismantlement possible, citing the Sept. 19, 2005 six-party 
agreement.  But this is a distortion of the facts.  The Sept. 19 
deal stipulates as a basic principle simultaneous action, involving 
reciprocal action and pledges.  The complete and irreversible 
dismantlement of North Korea's nuclear program and the normalization 
of ties must occur in tandem. 
 
North Korea's statement can therefore be seen as an attempt to size 
up the Obama Administration in a bid to gain the upper hand in 
dialogue.  But looking at Clinton's comments, it is clear that it 
has made a serious misjudgment.  The Obama camp did make it clear 
that it will change the basic tone of the U.S. diplomacy, but North 
Korea had better realize fast that the changes will not jettison 
 
America's basic diplomatic objectives. 
 
* This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version. 
 
 
Features 
 
Clinton: Obama Opposes Korea-US FTA 
(Dong-a Ilbo, January 15, 2009, Front Page) 
 
By Washington Correspondent Lee Ki-hong 
 
U.S. Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton said yesterday 
that the ROK-U.S. free trade deal has failed to secure fair trade 
conditions, adding that certain critical provisions need 
renegotiation. 
 
Clinton offered her comments in a written response submitted to the 
U.S. Senate prior to her confirmation hearing. 
 
"U.S. President-elect Barack Obama has been opposing the ROK-U.S. 
FTA, negotiated by the George W. Bush administration.  Some 
provisions including those related with the service and IT sectors 
are favorable to U.S. companies.  But, the U.S. failed to secure 
fair trade conditions in other sectors including the car industry," 
she said. 
 
She also took a firm attitude on North Korea.  "Sanctions against 
North Korea should be eased only when North Korea strictly keeps its 
promises.  Unless North Korea does its duty, sanctions that 
previously were eased should be imposed again and new sanctions 
should be considered," she said. 
 
* This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version. 
 
 
U.S. to Apply 'Smart Power' Tactics to North Korea Policy 
(Hankyoreh Shinmun, January 15, 2009, Page 4) 
 
Obama Administration will 'act with urgency' to prevent nuclear 
proliferation in North Korea 
 
By Reporter Lee Je-hoon 
 
In the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation 
hearing that took place over a period of more than five hours 
Tuesday (EST), Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, the nominee-designate 
for the U.S. Secretary of State, devoted a very brief amount of time 
to discussing North Korea policy, including North Korean nuclear 
weapons.   However, her brief and general words on the subject 
clearly showed the tenor and direction of the North Korea policy to 
be pursued by the administration of President-elect Barack Obama. 
 
In a noteworthy section, she indicated that "smart power," 
emphasized as a key to the Obama Administration's foreign policy, is 
to be applied to North Korea as well, and she emphasized that urgent 
measures would be taken to prevent nuclear proliferation in North 
Korea.   The gist of her message was that a focused response will be 
made to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue and that 
"tough-minded, intelligent diplomacy" will play a "leading role" in 
the process.  Clinton defined smart power as "the full range of 
tools at our disposal -- diplomatic, economic, military, political, 
legal, and cultural." 
In connection with the North Korean nuclear issue, Clinton 
emphasized a need to "act with urgency."  This runs contrary to 
predictions that the Obama Administration will set aside the North 
Korea issue as a "low priority" because they are tied up with 
overcoming the economic crisis and issues in Iraq, Afghanistan and 
the Middle East.  This is being interpreted as following in line 
with the recognition that North Korea's denuclearization and return 
to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty are urgent tasks that can be 
accomplished through diplomacy and that must be completed in order 
to maintain and strengthen the NPT, which has been stressed as a 
central task of the Obama Administration's foreign policy. 
 
Clinton also stated that she and President-elect Obama felt that the 
Six-Party Talks had advantages in bringing the North Korean nuclear 
issue to an end and said that the talks also presented an 
opportunity for the United States and North Korea to come into 
contact.  These statements indicated that bilateral dialogue between 
the two countries will be conducted in tandem with the Six-Party 
Talks.  This concept does not differ greatly from the structure of a 
comprehensive parallel resolution of the denuclearization of the 
Korean Peninsula and the normalization of North Korea-U.S. 
relations, which has been advocated by Obama's advisers and 
progressive U.S. think tanks. 
 
"Based on Clinton's statement at the confirmation hearing, there is 
a possibility of a clash with the Lee Myung-bak Administration's 
North Korea policy keynote of 'responding to the North Korean 
nuclear issue through South Korea-U.S. cooperation,' rather than 
direct dialogue between North Korea and the U.S.," said Kim 
Yeon-cheol, head of the Hankyoreh Peace Research Institute. 
 
Clinton also called the U.S.-Japan alliance the "cornerstone of 
American policy in Asia" and said that the South Korea-U.S. 
relationship was a "crucial economic and security partnership."  She 
called China a "critically important actor in a changing global 
landscape" and said, "We want a positive and cooperative 
relationship with China." 
 
* This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version. 
 
 
Stephens 
1