Clinton to assure S. Korea of alliance, coordinated policy on N. Korea

By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, Feb. 19 (Yonhap) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to
assure Seoul of Washington's commitment to a coordinated approach towards North
Korea during her two-day trip here to begin later Thursday as Pyongyang escalates
tensions with missile threat and bellicose statements.
In her first visit to Seoul as the top U.S. diplomat, Clinton is also likely to
outline her vision for the Seoul-Washington alliance and discuss some global
concerns including climate change and the reconstruction of Afghanistan. She
traveled to South Korea in 1993 and 1996 as first lady.
Clinton will arrive at Seoul Airport at 10:45 p.m. from Indonesia, accompanied by
President Barack Obama's senior Asia policy official at the National Security
Council, Jeffrey Bader, climate change envoy Todd Stern, and Christopher Hill,
the outgoing top U.S. negotiator on North Korea, according to her itinerary
released by South Korean and U.S. embassy officials. "Secretary of State Clinton
has no schedule for any official event today," a foreign ministry official said.
She will kick off her official activity here on Friday morning with a visit to
the U.S. military command in Seoul.
Clinton will hold one-hour talks with Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan on a wide
range of alliance issues, security concerns, and other global challenges, said
the ministry official.
"Since it is their first (foreign ministerial) talks, they will have broad
discussions on the development of the South Korea-U.S. alliance, the North Korean
nuclear issue, North Korea's recent threats, the global financial crisis, the
climate change, a plan for a bilateral summit, and other issues of mutual
concern," he said.
Clinton is expected to make clear that her government will deal with the North
Korean nuclear and missile issues in close consultation with South Korea and that
Washington does not recognize Pyongyang as a nuclear weapon state.
In response, the South Korean minister will brief her on Seoul's plan to expand
its contributions to Afghanistan and play a greater role in other global agendas.
Yu and Clinton plan to have a joint press conference after their talks.
The secretary will then pay a courtesy call on President Lee Myung-bak, who
arranged a one-hour luncheon meeting with her, unusual protocol for a foreign
guest who is not a head of state.
Lee's aides said the president took into account Clinton's status as a former
first lady.
Clinton is also set for a brief bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Han
Seung-soo, who served as Seoul's ambassador to Washington in the Bill Clinton
administration, with the climate issue and the world's economic woes high on
agenda.
The secretary is to meet a group of female students and leaders from various
walks of life to show her support for women's empowerment before flying to China
Friday night, the fourth and last leg of her eight-day regional tour.
Her trip comes amid reports that North Korea is readying for a ballistic missile
launch from a base on its east coast, along with the North's repeated verbal
threats warning an "all-out confrontational posture" against the conservative
South Korean government.
lcd@yna.co.kr
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