Filed under: President Bush , Foreign Policy En route to the Olympics, President Bush scheduled a pregnant stop in South Korea . "North Korea traps its people in misery and isolation," the president chided. In contrast, South Korea's openness to the global community has allowed the democratic nation to "take its rightful place on the world stage." North Korea's Pyongyang hoped to wipe his country from America's terror list with the symbolic dismantling of a nuclear reactor cooling tower in June. Holding a hard line against the communist leader, President Bush reaffirmed his commitment to South Korea and the verifiable dismantlement of all North Korean nuclear weapons programs. Admitting that he could not state with certainty that Pyongyang would cease nuclear ambitions, the president stated: "My hope is that the axis of evil list no longer exists. That's my hope for the sake of peace. That's my hope for the sake of our children." Beyond reaffirming the U.S. stance on North Korea's weapons program, President Bush's comments raise the issue of democracy and human rights on China's doorstep. The South Korea visit should be seen as a prelude to the president's China trip. The proclamations of human rights and national responsibility were not limited to North Korea, and will serve as the underlying current of everything spoken by the president as he arrives in Beijing for the Summer Games. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs ...
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Filed under: President Bush , Foreign Policy En route to the Olympics, President Bush scheduled a pregnant stop in South Korea . "North Korea traps its people in misery and isolation," the president chided. In contrast, South Korea's openness to the global community has allowed the democratic nation to "take its rightful place on the world stage." North Korea's Pyongyang hoped to wipe his country from America's terror list with the symbolic dismantling of a nuclear reactor cooling tower in June. Holding a hard line against the communist leader, President Bush reaffirmed his commitment to South Korea and the verifiable dismantlement of all North Korean nuclear weapons programs. Admitting that he could not state with certainty that Pyongyang would cease nuclear ambitions, the president stated: "My hope is that the axis of evil list no longer exists. That's my hope for the sake of peace. That's my hope for the sake of our children." Beyond reaffirming the U.S. stance on North Korea's weapons program, President Bush's comments raise the issue of democracy and human rights on China's doorstep. The South Korea visit should be seen as a prelude to the president's China trip. The proclamations of human rights and national responsibility were not limited to North Korea, and will serve as the underlying current of everything spoken by the president as he arrives in Beijing for the Summer Games. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs ...