(3rd LD) Lee, Obama vow efforts to denuclearize N. Korea, ratify FTA

(ATTN: COMBINES previous stories; RECASTS headline, lead paras; UPDATES with joint
press conference)
By Byun Duk-kun

SEOUL, Nov. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and U.S.
President Barack Obama urged North Korea Thursday to immediately return to
nuclear negotiations, vowing joint efforts to fully denuclearize the communist
nation under a package deal.
In a joint press conference after their summit, Obama announced that Stephen
Bosworth, special U.S. representative for North Korea policy, will visit
Pyongyang on Dec. 8 for bilateral talks as part of such efforts.
The leaders agreed to the so-called "grand bargain," which was first proposed by
the South Korean president in a bid to dismantle North Korea's nuclear program in
one single step rather than in phases.
"We two leaders completely agreed on the need to resolve the North Korean nuclear
issue in one single step as I proposed under a grand bargain, and agreed to
discuss how to pursue that goal in close consultations," Lee said in a joint
press conference.
"President Lee and I are in full agreement on a common approach going forward,"
Obama said.
"The thing I want to emphasize is that President Lee and I both agreed on the
need to break the pattern that has existed in the past, in which North Korea
behaves in a provocative fashion and then returns to talks for a while and then
leaves the talks seeking further concessions," Obama told the joint press
conference.
"We will not be distracted by a whole host of other side items that end up
generating a lot of meetings but not concrete actions."
There is a path for Pyongyang to gaining economic assistance and integration into
the international community, the U.S. president said.
"That opportunity and respect will not come with threats," he added.
Thursday's summit, the third of its kind between Lee and Obama, began on a
lighter note, with the South Korean president welcoming Obama's visit here that
followed earlier stops in Japan and China, saying he believes the U.S. president
saved "the best for last".
Obama expressed gratitude for the warm welcome, which he said indicated the
strong alliance between their two countries.
The U.S. president arrived here Wednesday as part of his four-nation Asia tour
that also took him to Singapore for the annual summit of the Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation forum.
The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to move forward on the bilateral free
trade agreement (FTA), signed over two years ago but yet to be ratified. U.S.
trade officials have insisted South Korea needs to concede more in the auto
sector where the trade balance leans heavily in Seoul's favor.
Lee said his government was willing to discuss any concerns the U.S. might have,
but stressed it was important for them to realize the enactment of the trade deal
will not only help strengthen their alliance, but also bring economic benefits.
"The trade between South Korea and the U.S. is balanced. It may have been
different 10 or 20 years ago when our economy was protected, but now the trade is
balanced," Lee told the press conference.
Obama, saying he is a "stronger believer" in the benefits of the FTA with South
Korea, cited concerns within the U.S. "around the incredible trade imbalances
that have grown over the last several decades."
The Congress tends to "lump" all of Asia together in looking at trade figures, he
said.
"One of my goals is to make sure... that American people, American businesses,
American workers recognize that we have to look at each agreement and each
country on its own merits," he said.
The U.S. president's first trip to South Korea was met with both warm welcomes
and voices of protest. As conservative civic organizations celebrated half a
century of the alliance between South Korea and the U.S., progressive groups
demanded a more equal footing between the countries.
A group of activists on Wednesday claimed the U.S. president was only seeking to
win Seoul's support for the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan. South Korea has recently
decided to send additional aid workers to the war-torn nation along with troops
to protect them.
bdk@yna.co.kr
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