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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 SEOUL 000195 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR ECON KPAO KS US
SUBJECT: SEOUL - PRESS BULLETIN; FEBRUARY 9, 2010 
 
TOP HEADLINES 
------------- 
 
Chosun Ilbo 
Four Opposition Parties Seek to Oust Prime Minister; 
A Third of Pro-Park Geun-hye Lawmakers in Ruling GNP "Sympathize" 
with the Move 
 
JoongAng Ilbo 
U.S. Asks President Lee to Help U.S. Troops to Use Uzbek Airport for 
Operations in Afghanistan 
 
Dong-a Ilbo 
Minor Opposition Democratic Labor Party Secretary-General Faces 
Arrest for Destruction of Evidence 
 
Hankook Ilbo 
10 Major College Admissions Officers Say ROKG's Admissions Officer 
System Falls Short of Expectations 
 
Hankyoreh Shinmun, Segye Ilbo, Seoul Shinmun 
MBC President Resigns in Protest over State-run Foundation for 
Broadcast Culture's Unilateral Appointment of Board Members 
 
 
DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS 
--------------------- 
 
According to a key Blue House official, early last year, the U.S., 
through high-level channels, asked President Lee Myung-bak to help 
the U.S. military with its request to use Navoi Airport in 
Uzbekistan as its new air supply route into Afghanistan, and 
President Lee plans to convey this U.S. request to Uzbek President 
Islam Karimov during their Feb. 11 summit. President Lee has a close 
friendship with the Uzbek president. (JoongAng) 
 
Two key North Korean security agencies yesterday threatened a 
"sacred war of retaliation" against the ROK for "anti-republic 
attempts to topple" the North Korean regime. The threat came on the 
same day that the two Koreas discussed resuming suspended tours to 
Mt. Kumgang and Kaesong, north of the border. (All) 
 
The two Koreas, meanwhile, failed to narrow their differences over 
the resumption of cross-border tours; the ROK reiterated its 
conditions for restarting the tours which the North claimed were 
already met. (All) 
 
According to an opinion survey by Gallup Korea commissioned by the 
Korea National Defense University, ROK citizens believe that the 
ROK-U.S. alliance has become significantly stronger under the Lee 
Myung-bak Administration. 50 percent of respondents said that the 
current ROK-U.S. alliance is strong. In 2007, the final year of the 
Roh Moo-hyun Administration, the figure was a mere 19 percent. 
(Chosun, JoongAng) 
 
 
INTERNATIONAL NEWS 
------------------ 
 
According to North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency, Wang 
Jiarui, head of the Chinese Communist Party's International 
Department, met in Pyongyang yesterday with North Korean leader Kim 
Jong-il and conveyed a "verbal personal message" from Chinese 
President Hu Jintao. (JoongAng, Hankyoreh, Segye, all TVs, Pressian, 
VoiceofPeople) 
 
 
MEDIA ANALYSIS 
-------------- 
 
-N. Korea 
--------- 
Citing North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), 
 
SEOUL 00000195  002 OF 003 
 
 
most ROK media reported that Wang Jiarui, head of the Chinese 
Communist Party's International Department, met in Pyongyang 
yesterday with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and conveyed a 
"verbal personal message" from Chinese President Hu Jintao. 
According to media reports, the KCNA did not report the contents of 
the meeting, but it may have included a call on North Korea to 
return to the stalled Six-Party Talks and an invitation for Kim to 
visit China. 
 
In a related development, moderate Hankook Ilbo's sub-heading read: 
"N. Korea Likely to Sidestep Six-Party Talks Issue and to Ask for 
Economic Aid and China's Mediation in Talks with U.S." 
 
-U.S.-China Relations 
--------------------- 
Moderate Seoul Shinmun carried a front-page analysis entitled "Is 
U.S.-China Trade Friction Escalating into All-out Trade War?"  It 
said: "It is feared that the trade friction between the two 
countries may throw cold water on a global economy which is barely 
on track to recovery....  A senior researcher at the Samsung 
Economic Research Institute said that the current situation stemmed 
from China's refusal to accept U.S. demands to correct its unfair 
trade and to appreciate its currency.  He went on to say: 'The two 
countries are not likely to easily budge from their positions.  The 
arrow has left the bow.'" 
 
-U.S. Operations in Afghanistan 
-------------------------------- 
Right-of-center JoongAng Ilbo gave front-page play to a report 
quoting a key Blue House official as saying that early last year, 
the U.S., through high-level channels, asked President Lee Myung-bak 
to help the U.S. military with its request to use Navoi Airport in 
Uzbekistan as its new air supply route into Afghanistan and that 
President Lee plans to convey this U.S. request to Uzbek President 
Islam Karimov during their Feb. 11 summit.  The report, while noting 
President Lee's close friendship with the Uzbek president, observed 
that it is out of the ordinary in international diplomacy for 
countries to discuss a third party's issue of concern during their 
summit. 
 
 
FEATURES 
-------- 
 
¶S. KOREANS BELIEVE ALLIANCE WITH U.S. HAS GROWN STRONGER 
(Chosun Ilbo, February 9, Page 6) 
 
By Military affairs reporter Yu yong-won 
 
South Koreans believe that the Seoul-Washington alliance has become 
significantly stronger since the inauguration of the Lee Myung-bak 
Administration, polls suggest. 
 
In the latest poll of 1,261 adults including 60 experts conducted by 
Gallup Korea from Sept. 9 to Oct. 16 last year for the Korea 
National Defense University, 49.9 percent of respondents said the 
Seoul-Washington alliance was strong.  This was a rise from 34.3 
percent compared to a similar poll in 2008, the first year of Lee's 
presidency.  By contrast, in 2007, the final year of the Roh 
Moo-hyun presidency, the figure was a mere 19.3 percent. 
 
In 2007, 40.8 percent of respondents said the alliance was 
"awkward," but the ratio dropped to 19.5 percent in 2008 and 12.2 
percent in 2009. 
 
A majority of respondents consider the U.S. the most important 
foreign country to the ROK's national security.  The percentage rose 
from 72.3 percent in 2007 to 85.9 percent in 2009. 
 
In multiple answers to a question about factors threatening national 
security, 49.7 percent in the latest poll cited the military threat 
from North Korea, followed by 47.2 percent for regime instability in 
the North and 28.1 percent for global recession or economic 
friction. 
 
SEOUL 00000195  003 OF 003 
 
 
 
(This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version.) 
 
 
 
U.S. ASKS PRESIDENT LEE TO HELP U.S. TROOPS TO USE UZBEK AIRPORT FOR 
OPERATIONS IN AFGHANISTAN 
(JoongAng Ilbo, February 9, 2010, Front Page) 
 
By Reporter Suh Seung-wook 
 
President Lee Myung-bak plans to deliver a U.S. request on its 
behalf to Uzbek President Islam Karimov during their February 11 
summit. 
 
A key Blue House official said on February 8, "As a non-official 
agenda item of the ROK-Uzbek summit, President Lee will deliver to 
Uzbek President Karimov the U.S. military's request to use Navoi 
Airport in Uzbekistan as its air supply route into Afghanistan."  It 
is out of the ordinary in international diplomacy for countries to 
discuss a third party's issue of concern during their bilateral 
summit. 
 
The Blue House official explained, "Early last year, the U.S. made 
the request through high-level channels," adding, "During his visit 
to Uzbekistan last May, President Lee was not able to bring up that 
matter, which was pushed aside by other pending issues, and so he 
plans to raise it this time." 
 
The U.S., which is waging a war in Afghanistan, is currently using 
the U.S. air base in Kyrgyzstan as its supply route.  However, 
Kyrgyzstan, pressured by Russia, announced it will shut down the 
U.S. air base.  Now the U.S. wants to secure Uzbekistan as an 
alternative supply route because it is considered an important 
staging post for U.S. troops in Afghanistan. 
 
The problem is that the U.S. and Uzbekistan are not in good terms. 
Uzbekistan had maintained close relations with the U.S., which used 
its air base (for Afghan operations) in 2001.  But Uzbekistan began 
to distance itself from the U.S. in 2005 when the U.S. criticized 
the country for its brutal crackdown on protests there. 
 
President Lee and Uzbek President Karimov have developed close 
relations.  President Karimov, who first met President Lee as Seoul 
city mayor in 2006, attended his presidential inauguration, and sent 
him fruit as a gift three times the same year.  In May last year, 
when the ROK President visited Uzbekistan, President Karimov 
accompanied him wherever he went, leading some people to call 
(Karimov's style) "stalking diplomacy." 
 
ROKG officials said that this issue (regarding the U.S.'s desire to 
use Uzbekistan as a supply route into Afghanistan) will not be 
easily solved even at the request of President Lee, adding that, 
however, it will be hard for President Karimov to ignore a request 
from an ally. 
 
 
STEPHENS