Clinton greeted by top U.S. commander in S. Korea amid N. Korea threats

By Sam Kim
SEOUL, Feb. 20 (Yonhap) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with the
top American military commander in South Korea on Friday as she kicked off her
first visit to the Asian ally as top diplomat, amid rising concerns over North
Korean provocation.

Emerging from a motorcade of more than a dozen Cadillacs and Jeeps, Clinton
smiled broadly and shook hands with a small group of South Korean and U.S.
members at the Combined Forces Command (CFC), including Gen. Walter Sharp.
Clinton, who arrived late Thursday, also signed her full name in a guestbook
spread open on a table on which a ceasefire that effectively ended the three-year
Korean War was forged in 1953.
The diplomat's two-day visit comes as North Korea appears to be preparing to
test-fire its most advanced missile, which is theoretically capable of hitting
the western United States.
It also comes as the U.S. and South Korea are bolstering their surveillance of
the communist state. North Korea recently declared void all cross-border military
accords and warned of an armed clash in the Yellow Sea.
The visit to the CFC was belatedly inserted into the itinerary of Clinton's
four-nation Asian trip, which began in Japan on Monday, U.S. officials here said,
declining to specify when or why.
Dressed in a black coat and a red jacket, Clinton later received a briefing on
rising tensions on the divided peninsula from Sharp and South Korean deputy
commander Lee Sung-chool, the officials said.
About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea as a deterrent against
North Korea.
Clinton will depart for China on Friday evening after meeting with South Korean
President Lee Myung-bak and her counterpart, Yu Myung-hwan.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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