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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 SEOUL 000706 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR ECON KPAO KS US
SUBJECT: SEOUL - PRESS BULLETIN; May 04, 2009 
 
TOP HEADLINES 
------------- 
 
Chosun Ilbo, All TVs, VoiceofPeople 
"Hi Seoul Festival" Opening Ceremony Cancelled Due to Protests 
Marking First Anniversary of Last Year's Anti-U.S. Beef Rallies 
 
JoongAng Ilbo 
President Lee Aims to Make Korea One of the World's Three Major 
Bicycle (Producing) Countries in Next Five Years 
 
Dong-a Ilbo, Segye Ilbo 
Former National Intelligence Service Chief: "I Reported to Former 
President Roh on How His Son Spent Money in U.S." 
 
Hankook Ilbo 
Education Ministry Set to Reject Presidential Aide's Move to Ban 
Private Cram Schools from Offering Late-Hour Classes after 10 p.m. 
 
Hankyoreh Shinmun 
"Severe Crackdown" on Protesters: Some 200 Protesters Taken into 
Custody during Rally to Commemorate One-Year Anniversary 
of Last Year's Anti-U.S. Beef Protests 
 
Seoul Shinmun 
Hyundai-Kia Overtakes Nissan as No. 6 in U.S. Car Sales 
 
DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS 
--------------------- 
 
According to an ROKG official, the USG recently asked Seoul to 
deploy troops to Afghanistan as part of reconstruction efforts in 
the war-torn country. This U.S. request may trigger a heated debate 
in the ROK over the troop deployment to Afghanistan. (Hankyoreh) 
 
ROK health officials yesterday reported another "presumed" case of 
H1N1 flu (swine flu), raising the number of "presumed" cases in the 
ROK to two in total. The latest patient traveled on the same 
passenger plane as the ROK's first confirmed H1N1 patient. (All) 
 
INTERNATIONAL NEWS 
------------------ 
 
The (U.S.) Council on Foreign Relations, in an April 27 report, said 
that North Korea possesses a small nuclear arsenal but does not seem 
to have the ability to deploy nuclear weapons. (JoongAng) 
 
Gary Samore, President Barack Obama's Policy Coordinator for Weapons 
of Mass Destruction, said in a May 1 speech at the Brookings 
Institution that North Korea is likely to conduct a nuclear test. 
Mr. Samore went on to say that the North would likely return to the 
Six-Party Talks within the year. (Dong-a, Hankyoreh, Segye, Seoul, 
all TVs) 
 
According to the (North) Korean Central News Agency, North Korea's 
Foreign Minister Pak Ui-chun said at an April 29 ministerial meeting 
in Cuba of the Non-Aligned Movement that Pyongyang will not 
participate in the Six-Party Talks. (Dong-a, Segye) 
 
MEDIA ANALYSIS 
-------------- 
 
-North Korea 
------------ 
On Saturday (May 2), the ROK media gave wide attention to Secretary 
of State Hillary Clinton's remarks at an April 30 Senate 
Appropriations Committee hearing, in which Secretary Clinton said 
that it was "implausible, if not impossible," that North Korea would 
return to the Six-Party Talks. 
 
Secretary Clinton was further quoted: "We have absolutely no 
interest and no willingness on the part of this Administration to 
 
SEOUL 00000706  002 OF 005 
 
 
give them (the North Koreans) any economic aid at all.  They are 
digging themselves into a deeper and deeper hole with the 
international community." 
 
Most ROK media today carried inside-page reports quoting Gary 
Samore, President Barack Obama's Policy Coordinator for Weapons of 
Mass Destruction, as saying during a May 1 speech at the Brookings 
Institution that North Korea is likely to conduct a nuclear test. 
Mr. Samore was further quoted: "It is very clear that the North 
Koreans want to pick a fight.  They want to kill the Six-Party 
Talks, but will return to the negotiation table within nine months." 
 
 
Left-leaning Hankyoreh Shinmun, in particular, noted Mr. Samore's 
statement - that the U.S. would hold direct talks with North Korea 
only within the framework of the Six-Party Talks - and interpreted 
this as a sign of a change in U.S. approach toward North Korea. 
 
In a related development, conservative Dong-a Ilbo editorialized 
today: "Observers say that Secretary Clinton's clear response is 
attributable to the lesson learned from 20 years of negotiations 
with North Korea.  Although the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush 
Administrations placated the North with concessions in response to 
its bad behavior, they failed to prevent the North from crossing the 
nuclear threshold. ...  The lesson the U.S. has learned should also 
apply to the ROK, China, Japan and Russia.  If the five nations of 
the Six-Party Talks show no response (to North Korea's threats) ... 
and back down again, no one will have any expectation that the 
Six-Party Talks can resume, never mind resolving the North Korean 
nuclear issue.  The ROK, China, Japan and Russia should actively 
follow the example of the U.S. ... If they drag their feet, they 
will once again be taken in by the North." 
 
Conservative Chosun Ilbo's editorial echoed Dong-a's views, arguing: 
"It is time to break this vicious cycle (in which U.S.-North Korea 
talks and the Six-Party Talks reward, not punish, North Korea for 
its provocations,  while the North beefs up its nuclear and missile 
capabilities.) ... If the Six-Party Talks no longer function 
properly, the ROK and the U.S. should discuss if there is any other 
alternative to the multilateral talks." 
 
Right-of-center JoongAng Ilbo's Senior Journalist Kim Young-hie 
opined: "North Korea should stop its foolish march under the banner 
of nuclear weapons and missile threats. ... It should invite Stephen 
Bosworth to visit and return to the Six-Party Talks.  The ROKG 
should also help Pyongyang make the right choice.  This is because 
the North's foolish march will only lead to another experiment with 
nuclear weapons and missiles. " 
 
Right-of-center JoongAng Ilbo gave play to the (U.S.) Council on 
Foreign Relations' April 27 report claiming that North Korea 
possesses a small nuclear arsenal but does not seem to have the 
ability to deploy nuclear weapons. 
 
 
- Troop Deployment to Afghanistan 
--------------------------------- 
Left-leaning Hankyoreh Shinmun front-paged a report today quoting an 
ROKG official as saying yesterday that the USG recently asked Seoul 
to deploy troops to Afghanistan as part of reconstruction efforts in 
the war-torn country.  In an editorial, Hankyoreh urged the ROKG to 
flatly reject the U.S. request, arguing: "The only way to stabilize 
the Afghan situation is to reconcile with the Taliban, as the Afghan 
President stated.  Resorting to military force, instead of political 
solutions, will only make the Afghan war another Vietnam war." 
 
 
OPINIONS/EDITORIALS 
------------------- 
 
The INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY SHOULD MAKE IT CLEAR THAT NO AID WILL BE 
POSSIBLE IF NORTH KOREA REJECTS SIX-PARTY TALKS 
(Dong-a Ilbo, May 4, 2009, Page 31) 
 
 
SEOUL 00000706  003 OF 005 
 
 
The U.S. responded strongly to North Korea's attempt to rattle the 
Six-Party Talks.  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said at an 
April 30 Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, "we have 
absolutely no interest and no willingness on the part of this 
administration to give them any economic aid, including fuel oil, at 
all (as long as the North Koreans do not return to the Six-Party 
Talks)."  Meanwhile, the (North) Korea Central News Agency reported 
May 2 that Foreign Minister Pak Ui-chun said during an April 29 
ministerial meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement, "Pyongyang will not 
participate in the Six-Party Talks again and will not be bound by 
any Six-Party agreements."  The North and the U.S. seem to be on a 
collision course as they ratchet up the tension. 
 
If North Korea pulls out of the Six-Party Talks aimed at resolving 
the North Korean nuclear issue, the multilateral talks no longer 
have a reason for being.  North Korea's boycott of the Six-Party 
Talks is a provocation that forces the other five participating 
countries (the ROK, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia) to make 
concessions.  Now is the time when not only the U.S. but also the 
ROK, China, Japan and Russia should decide whether to continue or 
suspend the talks. 
 
Observers say that Secretary Clinton's clear response is 
attributable to the lesson learned from 20 years of negotiations 
with North Korea.  Although the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush 
Administrations placated the North with concessions in response to 
its bad behavior, they failed to prevent the North from crossing the 
nuclear threshold in the end.  The Barack Obama Administration 
indicates that it will not repeat the same mistake.  This lesson the 
U.S. has learned should also apply to the ROK, China, Japan and 
Russia. 
 
North Korea even warned of its second nuclear test.  Remembering 
that following the launch of a Taepodong-1 missile in August, 1998, 
and the nuclear test in October, 2006, the North had its own way in 
relations with the U.S. and at the Six-Party Talks, it now intends 
to escalate the crisis as much as possible.  Nine months after the 
firing of the Taepodong-1 missile, the U.S. sent Special Adviser on 
North Korea William Perry to Pyongyang, and two months after the 
nuclear test, the U.S. welcomed the resumption of the Six-Party 
Talks, dragging itself into the North's scheme as a result. 
 
If the five nations of the Six-Party Talks show no response while 
North Korea resumes reprocessing spent fuel rods -- violating the 
spirit of the Six-Party Talks (which began in August 2003), the 
February 13 and the October 3 Agreements of 2007 -- it would mean 
that those five nations are avoiding their obligations.  If the five 
parties back down again, no one will have any expectation that the 
Six-Party Talks can resume, never mind resolving the North Korean 
nuclear issue.  The ROK, China, Japan and Russia should actively 
follow the position of the U.S. that should the North reject the 
(Six-Party) Talks, that they will provide no aid.  If the five 
nations drag their feet, they will once again be taken in by the 
Noth. 
 
 
NO DEPLOYMENT IN AFGHANISTAN 
(Hankyoreh Shinmun, May 4, 2009, Page 23) 
 
Some have said that the U.S. recently asked the South Korean 
government to: 1) consider sending troops and 2) expand its 
financial support for the reconstruction of Afghanistan.  Since 
(according to some people) a major goal of Vice Foreign Minister Lee 
Yong-joon's visit to the United States last week was to fine-tune 
understandings on this issue, it seems clear that full-scale 
discussions of the matter have already begun.  What the government 
must do now is to say clearly to the U.S. that there will be no 
redeployment of troops under any circumstance. 
 
The South Korean government has unconditionally supported the U.S.' 
failed Middle East policy.  As a price, the Taliban kidnapped 23 
Koreans in 2007 (in Afghanistan) where two died, and Sgt. Yoon 
Jang-ho fell victim to terrorism.  Also fresh in our memory is Kim 
Sun-il, who died after an armed group in Iraq kidnapped him in 2004, 
 
SEOUL 00000706  004 OF 005 
 
 
and the four Korean tourists who were killed in a terrorist attack 
in Yemen in March.  The deployment of troops neither raised our 
international prestige nor improved the quality of the Korea-US 
alliance.  Within South Korea, as there was neither justification 
nor practical benefits, all it did was cause deep fissures in 
domestic opinion.  The Dongui and Dasan units in Afghanistan were 
withdrawn due to the belated recognition that it was a mistake to 
have sent them. 
 
To consider sending troops again despite all this is something a 
government in proper order could not do.  Yet, it is said that 
within the ruling party, there are people saying that in order to 
stop the U.S. from moving to engage in direct talks with North 
Korea, we should push the deployment of troops to Afghanistan.  This 
is a regressive concept wedding Cold War thinking onto Great 
Power-centered "contract work" diplomacy.  This is even more 
pathetic than when the Roh Moo-hyun government was pushed into 
sending troops to Iraq in order to try and get a lever to use in 
fine-tuning North Korea policy. 
 
Moreover, the Afghanistan policy of the U.S. Obama Administration is 
coming under fire within and outside of the U.S.  President Barack 
Obama, who made the strengthening of military intervention in 
Afghanistan a campaign pledge, decided after his inauguration to 
send 21,000 US troops as reinforcements.  He has since been 
appealing to other countries to join in the deployment of troops but 
that appeal has thus far yielded no response.  The major reason for 
the lack of results in the U.S. War in Afghanistan, which has lasted 
seven years and eight months, can be found not in insufficient troop 
strength but in its inappropriate approach.  The only way to 
stabilize the Afghan situation is to reconcile with the Taliban, as 
the Afghan President stated.  Resorting to military force, instead 
of political solutions, will only make the Afghan war another 
Vietnam War. 
 
It is hoped the government clarifies its position so that there is 
no unnecessary controversy over the troop deployment issue.  As the 
government has expressed earlier, it can consider increasing the 
size of its civilian reconstruction team in Afghanistan, but it 
should be cautious on that matter as well. 
 
(This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version.) 
 
 
CAN PRESSURE AND NEGLECT HELP KEEP N. KOREA IN CHECK? 
(Chosun Ilbo, May 4, 2009, Page 31) 
 
U.S. President Barack Obama's coordinator for weapons of mass 
destruction policy, Gary Samore, said Friday, "It's very clear that 
the North Koreans want to pick a fight."  Asked if he expected 
Pyongyang to carry out another nuclear test, Samore said, "I think 
they will."  An official who personally dealt with the North Korean 
nuclear issue under the Clinton administration in the 1990s, Samore 
is the Obama Administration's nuclear proliferation "tsar." 
Predicting that North Korea would be forced back to negotiations 
within nine months, he said, "We'll just wait." 
 
That suggests Washington won't hasten to negotiate with Pyongyang or 
yield to its provocations, and that the Six-Party Talks might not 
re-open within the year.  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, too, 
recently saw little chance for the North to return to the Six-Party 
Talks and said the North Koreans are "digging themselves into a 
deeper and deeper hole with the international community." 
 
The outline of the Obama Administration's North Korea policy is 
becoming clearer.  The North recently threatened it would test 
another nuclear device and another intercontinental ballistic 
missile, and renew its clandestine uranium enrichment program.  But 
the U.S. administration declined to respond directly but countered 
with UN sanctions.  It is a tactic of pressure and neglect. 
 
The choice is understandable. U.S.-North Korea dialogue and the 
Six-Party Talks have been criticized for not punishing but rewarding 
 
SEOUL 00000706  005 OF 005 
 
 
the North's provocations, while Pyongyang has continued to foster 
its nuclear and missile capabilities.  It is time to break this 
vicious cycle.   International examples, however, show that UN 
sanctions have had little effect on dictatorial states like North 
Korea.  There are concerns, therefore, that Seoul and Washington may 
eventually have to negotiate with the North under conditions that 
favor Pyongyang.  They must make sure that they do not repeat the 
mistakes of the past. 
 
The (ROK) government should first talk to the U.S. about how both 
nations plan to handle situations when the North exacerbates the 
crisis through provocations such as an additional nuclear test, 
rather than simply going along with the pressure and neglect tactic. 
 If the Six-Party Talks no longer function properly, the ROK and the 
U.S. should discuss if there is any other alternative to the 
multilateral talks. 
 
(This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version.) 
 
 
 
 
STANTON