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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 SEOUL 001933 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR ECON KPAO KS US
SUBJECT: SEOUL - PRESS BULLETIN; December 9, 2009 
 
TOP HEADLINES 
------------- 
 
Chosun Ilbo 
Blue House to Overhaul Military's Weapons 
Procurement System to Ensure Transparency 
 
JoongAng Ilbo 
Ruling Grand National Party (GNP) Backtracks 
on Banning Wage Payment to Full-Time Unionists 
 
Dong-a Ilbo 
Cabinet Approves Bill to Allow Seoul National University to Become 
Independent Corporate Entity in March 2011 
 
Hankook Ilbo 
President Lee Offers to Provide Flu Vaccines to N. Korea amid 
Reports of Rapid Spread of New Flu Virus in the North 
 
Hankyoreh Shinmun, Segye Ilbo, Seoul Shinmun 
Ruling GNP Railroads Budget for Four-River Restoration Project 
 
 
DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS 
--------------------- 
 
The ROKG yesterday finalized a plan to send up to 350 soldiers to 
Afghanistan to protect civilian workers in Parwan Province from July 
1, 2010 to Dec. 31, 2012. The plan, pending approval at the National 
Assembly, will be submitted for review this week. (All) 
 
 
INTERNATIONAL NEWS 
------------------- 
 
U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy Stephen Bosworth 
arrived in Pyongyang yesterday, beginning his three-day trip for 
bilateral talks with North Korea to persuade the North to return to 
the Six-Party Talks. (All) 
 
A senior U.S. administration official, in a Dec. 7 press briefing, 
said that if North Korea does not return to the Six-Party Talks, it 
will reinforce the intention of the international community to 
continue a very strong enforcement of Resolution 1874 and other 
Security Council resolutions against North Korea. (Chosun, JoongAng, 
Seoul) 
 
 
MEDIA ANALYSIS 
--------------- 
 
-Ambassador Bosworth's Visit to N. Korea 
---------------------------------------- 
All ROK media covered U.S. Special Representative for North Korea 
Policy Stephen Bosworth's arrival in Pyongyang yesterday, portraying 
him as the first U.S. envoy to sit down for senior-level bilateral 
talks with North Korea under the Obama Administration.  According to 
media reports, while in Pyongyang for three days, Ambassador 
Bosworth is expected to meet with First Vice Foreign Minister Kang 
Sok-ju to persuade the North to return to the Six-Party Talks and to 
reaffirm its commitment to the September 19 Joint Statement. 
 
Conservative Chosun Ilbo quoted an ROKG official as saying: "Chances 
seem slim for Ambassador Bosworth to meet North Korean leader Kim 
Jong-il." 
 
Most media noted Dec. 7 press remarks by a senior U.S. 
administration official, in which he said: "The purpose of these 
talks is to determine whether they're willing to reaffirm the 2005 
joint statement and return to the (Six-Party) Talks.  This is ... 
simply to have an opportunity to determine what the North's 
intentions are with respect to those two issues."  He was further 
 
SEOUL 00001933  002 OF 007 
 
 
quoted: "(Ambassador Bosworth) is definitely not carrying any 
additional inducements. ... We don't intend to reward North Korea 
simply for going back to doing something that it had previously 
committed to do. " 
 
Chosun Ilbo interpreted these remarks as implying that there will be 
no discussion of a peace treaty replacing the armistice on the 
Korean Peninsula, which the North has demanded as a precondition to 
returning to the Six-Party Talks.  Conservative Dong-a Ilbo saw the 
remarks as reaffirming Washington's firm stance toward North Korea. 
 
 
 
OPINIONS/EDITORIALS 
------------------- 
 
SAFETY OF TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN MUST BE TOP PRIORITY 
(Chosun Ilbo, December 9, 2009, Page 39) 
 
The government finalized its Afghan troop deployment plan on 
Tuesday, deciding to dispatch around 100 civilian reconstruction 
workers, 40 police officers and around 350 soldiers to Parwan 
Province north of Kabul.  The personnel will be in charge of 
administrative and medical support, agricultural and rural 
development and vocational and police training. 
 
The troops will be deployed in Afghanistan from July 1, 2010 until 
Dec. 31, 2012 and their main mission will be protecting the Korean 
civilian aid workers and trainers.  Parwan Province is not a Taliban 
stronghold and is considered relatively safe among the 34 provinces, 
while its proximity to a U.S. Air Force Base in Bagram makes it easy 
to fly in supplies should emergencies arise.  Parwan Province is 10 
times the size of Seoul, and 70 percent of its terrain is covered by 
rugged mountains.  Recently, there have been attacks by rockets, 
mortars and improvised explosive devices. 
 
Most of the soldiers being deployed there will be picked from the 
special forces units, and armored personnel carriers and UH-60 Black 
Hawk transport helicopters mounted with machine guns will also be 
sent to protect the Korean personnel because support from American 
and other multinational forces would not be readily available. 
 
The greatest concern is the safety of the personnel.  The government 
must take preemptive diplomatic steps to explain to its Arab allies 
that the mission of the contingent is to assist in reconstruction 
efforts, and that the troops are being sent to protect the Korean 
civilian aid workers. 
 
As it reviews the deployment plan, the National Assembly must make 
sure that all measures have been taken by the military to ensure the 
safety of personnel.  The main opposition Democratic Party is 
against the plan and is taking issue with the two-and-a-half-year 
deployment schedule, which differs from the previous 
administration's approach of renewing the mission every year. 
Germany, which has set its troop deployment schedule at one year 
renewable, is experiencing a massive headache every time its 
parliament has to ratify an extension, while troops face increased 
pressure and attacks in Afghanistan when that time comes. 
 
The Roh Moo-hyun Administration deployed the Dongui (medical) and 
Dasan (engineering) units, as well as Air Force transport personnel, 
to Afghanistan between 2001 and 2002, when the DP was the ruling 
party.  The Roh Administration faced considerable opposition to the 
troop dispatch but decided it needed to send them in view of the 
international fight against terrorism and the importance of the 
Korea-U.S. alliance.  Rather than flatly rejecting the new troop 
deployment plan, the DP must tap into its experience as the former 
ruling party and suggest constructive ways to ensure the safety of 
the Korean civilian workers and soldiers and protect the national 
interest. 
 
(This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version.) 
 
 
SEOUL 00001933  003 OF 007 
 
 
 
ROK CONTRIBUTION TO AFGHANISTAN SERVES NATIONAL INTEREST 
(Dong-a Ilbo, December 9, Page 35) 
 
The ROKG yesterday finalized a plan to send up to 350 soldiers to 
Afghanistan.  If the National Assembly approves the plan, the ROK 
will join in international peace-building and reconstruction efforts 
by sending 140 Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) personnel and 
(350) troops to protect them to Afghanistan.  This will add a new 
chapter to the ROK's international peace-building efforts.  The ROK 
had deployed the Zaytun Unit in Iraq, the Dongmyeong Unit in Lebanon 
and the Cheonghae Unit in Somalia.  The ROK's contributions serve 
national interest and enhance national status as well. 
 
The Afghan war has entered into a new phase after President Obama 
announced a plan to send an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan. 
 The international community is rallying to win an eight-year war 
against the Taliban which has sheltered terrorist organizations. 
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) also pledged to deploy 
an additional 7,000 troops. 
 
We should be voluntarily involved in the peace-building and 
reconstruction process of the war-torn country.  The ROK is the 
world's 13th largest economic power.  We are a member of the 
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and 
will host next year's G20 summit.  If the ROK just touts itself as 
one of the world's leading countries without making any 
contributions to international peace, it will not be genuinely 
treated as such. 
 
After a field survey, the ROKG established a plan to provide aid and 
send troops to Afghanistan.  The ROK's Provincial Reconstruction 
Team (PRT) will take charge of strengthening Afghanistan's 
administrative ability, assisting its health care and agricultural 
development, providing vocational training, and training the Afghan 
police.  This assistance is surely necessary to root out al-Qaida 
and the Taliban and to help Afghanistan stand on its own feet. 
Although Parwan Province, where the PRT will be stationed, is said 
to be a relatively safe region, we need to prepare for the worst 
possible situation by sending troops to protect civilians there. 
In 2007, we saw ROK aid workers kidnapped in Afghanistan.  We cannot 
rule out the possibility that with the ROK's troop contribution, the 
Taliban may attempt a terrorist attack on ROK civilians. 
 
The opposition parties, including the Democratic Party, which 
expressed their opposition to the troop dispatch, should address the 
troop dispatch bill from the perspective of our national interests 
and international responsibility.  The Uri Party, the predecessor of 
the Democratic Party, supported the deployment of the Zaytun Unit to 
Iraq five years ago.  A total of 43 nations, more than the number of 
nations contributing to the war in Iraq, have sent their combat 
troops and reconstruction teams to Afghanistan.  The ROK is not in a 
position to sit idly by.  In a situation where we have to brace for 
the North Korean threat in cooperation with the U.S., if we are 
passive in U.S.-led anti-terrorism efforts and peacekeeping 
activities, we could lose something more precious. 
 
 
FEATURES 
-------- 
KIM JONG-IL 'HAS S-E-C-R-E-T UNDERGROUND ESCAPE ROUTE' 
(Chosun Ilbo, December 9, 2009, Page 4) 
 
By Reporter Ahn Yong-hyun 
 
Kim Jong-il has a network of s-e-c-r-e-t tunnels as an escape route 
in case of emergency, according to a prominent defector.  Hwang 
Jang-Yop (86), a former secretary of the North Korean Workers Party, 
on Sunday told the Seoul-based Free North Korea Radio run by a group 
of defectors, "About 300 m below ground in Pyongyang, there exists a 
second underground world which is different from the subway level." 
 
The tunnels stretch for some 40 to 50 km around Pyongyang linking to 
Nampo and Sunchon, Hwang said. 
 
SEOUL 00001933  004 OF 007 
 
 
 
"The chief security guard for the subway construction site came and 
invited me to the site, asking me to mediate in a scuffle between 
soldiers and college students," Hwang said.  "After I went down into 
the subway, I found another tunnel further down below."  He said 
there are countless such s-e-c-r-e-t tunnels and underground 
facilities in Pyongyang.  Hwang is a former president of Kim Il Sung 
University. 
 
He said there are clean spring water and green grass in one tunnel 
that leads to Mt. Jamo in Sunchon, about 40 km from Pyongyang. 
Another tunnel extends to Yongwon near Mt. Myohyang, about 50 km 
from Pyongyang. 
 
Yet another links the Mt. Cholbong recreation center in Samsok 
District in Pyongyang to the port of Nampo, which would allow 
leaders to escape to China in an emergency, he said. 
 
"North Korea started building the tunnels right after the armistice" 
that halted the Korean War, Hwang said.  "They were so elaborately 
built that a visiting Soviet military delegation marveled at them." 
 
Pyongyang also has a straightforward subway 100-150 m-deep that 
opened in 1973.  It is touted to foreign visitors as a tourist 
attraction but could be converted into a huge underground bunker in 
time of war. 
 
(This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version.) 
 
 
CHEONG WA DAE AIMS TO END GRAFT IN DEFENSE PROCUREMENT 
(Chosun Ilbo, December 9, 2009, Front page) 
 
By Reporters Ju Yong-joong 
 
Cheong Wa Dae is working out reforms to defense procurement to end 
frequent irregularities, an official said Tuesday.  Under the plan, 
the roles of the Defense Ministry and the Defense Acquisition 
Program Administration (DAPA) will be reorganized. 
 
A Cheong Wa Dae official said the plan, to be announced early next 
year, will focus on ending the long-standing monopoly of active-duty 
and retired military officers in the defense procurement process, 
which ranges from budget formulation to weapons procurement.  It 
will also focus on increasing transparency. 
 
DAPA has resisted the ministry's efforts to regain the authority to 
formulate the defense procurement budget, work out mid- and 
long-term defense programs, and supervise the Agency for Defense 
Development. 
 
DAPA was launched as a spin-off agency of the ministry in January 
2006 during the Roh Moo-hyun Administration as part of defense 
reforms and to prevent corruption.  But the official said 
irregularities in defense procurement have continued even after the 
inauguration of the Lee Myung-bak Administration. 
 
In a Cabinet meeting, President Lee Myung-bak said, "There is a risk 
of systematic corruption under the current system of weapons 
procurement and conscription administration" and called for a 
"drastic" reform plan. "I believe there is a way to save money and 
improve results" at the same time, he added.  He added that the 
Defense Ministry should work together with related agencies to come 
up with a comprehensive measure. 
 
The official said a taskforce is working out "strong" ways of 
revamping the defense procurement system.  The official added that 
the Defense Acquisition Program Administration will be revamped at 
the same level as the National Tax Service restructuring which the 
government carried out this year. 
 
(This is a translation prepared by the newspaper.  We have compared 
the English version on the website with the Korean version and made 
 
SEOUL 00001933  005 OF 007 
 
 
some changes to make them identical.) 
 
 
NORTH KOREA'S FREE TRADE BASE PLANS FOR RYUCHO ISLAND SIGNAL REFORM 
 
(Hankyoreh Shinmun, December 9, 2009, Pages 1 and 6: Excerpts) 
 
By Correspondents Park Min-hee and Kwon Tae-ho 
 
Experts say North Korea is looking to strengthen international 
economic ties and attract foreign investment 
 
North Korea is reportedly planning the creation of a free trade base 
on Ryucho Island near Sinuiju and its development as a new special 
economic district.  Analysts are interpreting this as a signal from 
the country that it plans to renew efforts at building a special 
economic district in Sinuiju, the largest gateway city on its border 
with China. 
 
In an interview with Hankyoreh on Tuesday, a source in Dandong, who 
wished to remain unnamed and has long worked with North Korea and is 
familiar with the North Korean situation, reported hearing recently 
from senior officials in charge of North Korea's external trade that 
preparations are underway for the development of Ryucho Island as 
part of a special economic zone.  The source said, "As a result of 
Ryucho Island's small area (2.82 square kilometers), it looks as if 
they are planning to build a free trade base rather than a 
large-scale complex and to display wares coming out of North Korea 
there so that people can buy them freely."  The source added, "They 
also plan to build a large dock, and there is the added advantage of 
China's Langtou Harbor across the way." 
 
It is also reported that core parties in the North Korean government 
have decided on the plan and responsible parties within the North 
Korean government who had been appointed have already begun 
attracting foreign capital.  Observers are predicting that if these 
reforms are successful, there is a strong chance that economic 
development will expand to the Sinuiju area. 
 
Observers have also learned that the North Korean government will be 
establishing even more measures in order to create a greater ripple 
effect to further open up Raseon, a city in North Hamgyong Province, 
for investment in conjunction with the Chinese government's 
development of the Chang-Ji-Tu (Changchun, Jilin and Tuman River 
basin) Pilot Zone. 
 
These trends are a sign that North Korea has begun a drive for 
economic development through openness and the attraction of foreign 
investment.  Observers are saying this determination towards 
development appears to have been present in North Korea for some 
time.  Sources in Dandong say that Chinese factory equipment and 
construction materials such as H-beams have been taken into North 
Korea through Dandong at an unprecedented scale since early last 
year, lending support to claims that North Korea has already set a 
blueprint for its economic development.  Analysts are also saying 
this move from North Korea could have a favorable effect on the 
North Korea-U.S. dialogue currently in progress. 
 
Chinese officials familiar with the North Korea situation say that 
North Korea's recent currency reform should be interpreted as a sign 
of the active pursuit of a "North Korean-style market economy" 
rather than a rollback of economic reforms in the country.  Another 
source acquainted with trends among senior North Korean officials 
said that North Korea has been "very active recently about joining 
forces with China to develop the border region, and the central 
government is preparing specific plans." 
 
The source added, "It is clear that economic reforms will move 
forward after this currency reform." 
 
It is also known that North Korea recently created a Foreign 
Investment Board and has been making active attempts to attract 
foreign investment.  Scott Snyder, director of the Center for 
U.S.-Korea Policy at the Asia Foundation, visited North Korea in 
 
SEOUL 00001933  006 OF 007 
 
 
late November as a member of a U.S. Council on Foreign Relations 
Task Force on Korean Peninsula policy and announced what he heard 
from North Korean authorities during his visit in a post Monday 
(local time) on the web site GlobalSecurity.org. 
 
The head of North Korea's Foreign Investment Board who met with 
Snyder's group actively informed them about plans to attract foreign 
investment,. These plans include a variety of strategies ranging 
from (dealing with) the issue of repatriation of profits earned by 
foreign investment companies in North Korea to various tax benefits. 
 North Korea also offered to set monthly wages at around 30 Euros 
(44.60 dollars).  Snyder noted that this is lower than the monthly 
wage of 57.50 dollars currently paid to North Korean workers at the 
Kaesong Industrial Complex. 
 
North Korean authorities also have plans to attract foreign 
investment to assist in building 100,000 housing units in Pyongyang, 
one of the tasks set in the country's plan for a "strong and 
powerful nation by 2012."  Additionally, the country has proposed a 
plan to offer "special perks" related to the mining of North Korean 
natural resources to foreign companies interested in investing in 
the project. 
 
Foreign companies are currently forbidden from engaging in new 
investment in North Korea as part of the sanctions set by United 
Nations Resolution 1874 in response to North Korea's nuclear test on 
May 25 of this year.  Observers say North Korea's plan for 
attracting foreign investment can also be interpreted as a 
determination to reestablish relations with the international 
community in the future. 
 
(This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version.) 
 
 
U.S. APPROACH TO NORTH KOREA REFLECTS HARD SURFACE WITH FLEXIBLE 
CORE 
(Hankook Ilbo, December 9, 2009, Page 3) 
 
By Washington Correspondent Hwang Yu-seok 
 
The U.S. publicly says that there will be no meeting with Kim but 
does not rule out the possibility of extending Ambassador Bosworth's 
schedule in Pyongyang. 
 
The U.S. administration's position on its dialogue with North Korea 
appears resolute on the surface.  The administration has emphasized 
that the U.S.-North Korea dialogue is only aimed at urging the North 
to rejoin the Six-Party Talks and implement denuclearization steps 
under the September 19 Joint Statement. 
 
Right before U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen 
Bosworth's visit to Pyongyang, Washington reiterated this position 
through its officials.  State Department Spokesman Ian Kelly said, 
"I don't think he's seeking a meeting with (North Korean leader) Kim 
Jong-il."  In other words, a meeting with Kim, which could raise 
doubts that this dialogue may be a "negotiation," is not a necessary 
condition (for Bosworth's visit), and the U.S. does not feel a need 
to request a meeting with Kim, either.  Victor Cha, a professor at 
Georgetown University who served as Director for Asian Affairs at 
the National Security Council under the George W. Bush 
Administration, said that against North Korea's wishes, "President 
Barack Obama seems to have approved only one round of dialogue with 
the North." 
 
The U.S. aims to get Pyongyang's clear response about 
denuclearization and a return to the Six-Party Talks.  (Ambassador 
Bosworth's visit) is also intended to build justification for asking 
China, which has enormous leverage over North Korea, to apply strong 
sanctions against the North, in case (Washington) fails to persuade 
the North (to rejoin the multilateral talks.)  Ahead of (Ambassador 
Bosworth's) bilateral talks with the North, a USG official made 
remarks on sanctions, saying that if the U.S. fails to persuade the 
North (to return to the Six-Party Talks,) it will consult (with the 
 
SEOUL 00001933  007 OF 007 
 
 
international community) on the need to impose additional sanctions 
against North Korea in addition to existing UN Resolutions. 
According to a December 8 report by Japan's Mainichi Shimbun, North 
Korea told U.S. experts on the Korean Peninsula who visited 
Pyongyang last month that it wants to sign a peace treaty (with the 
U.S.) while not mentioning the possibility of returning to the 
Six-Party Talks.  This report may leave less room to maneuver for 
the U.S. 
 
However, it seems that the U.S. expects good results (from the 
bilateral talks) despite its determined stance.  This is evident 
when U.S. authorities did not rule out the possibility that 
Ambassador Bosworth's three-day stay may be extended, saying that 
the U.S. does not want to put a time line on his visit.  This 
indicates that the U.S. could act in a flexible manner depending on 
how the North will respond.  This U.S. position results from a 
symbolic meaning of Bosworth's visit as the first high-level 
U.S.-North Korea talks since the inauguration of the Obama 
Administration and a realistic judgment that sanctions alone cannot 
change North Korea. 
 
U.S. experts on North Korea say that by demanding a peace treaty and 
the normalization of bilateral ties, North Korea is putting the cart 
before the horse.  The U.S. experts, however, believe that these 
issues may be discussed from the perspective of a "comprehensive 
approach."  The U.S. also may raise the need to take an 
"intermediary" step in order to restore mutual trust, much like it 
established the U.S. Interests Section in Cuba even though the U.S. 
remains hostile to (the government in) Cuba. 
 
 
STEPHENS