Bush, Roh Condemn N. Korea Nukes

President Bush took a hardline stance against North Korea on Thursday, saying the U.S. won't help the communist nation build a civilian nuclear reactor to produce electricity until it dismantles its nuclear weapons programs.

With the nuclear dispute with North Korea at an apparent impasse, mr. Bush and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun put the communist regime on notice that it would not be allowed to keep its nuclear weapons programs.

"A nuclear-armed North Korea will not be tolerated," Roh said through a translator.

Mr. Bush and Roh met ahead of a 21-member trade and economic summit whose members include the leaders of the five countries — the United States, China, South Korea, Russia and Japan — negotiating with North Korea for its nuclear disarmament.

Roh called his fifth meeting with Mr. Bush "constructive."

Roh said the second phase of the fifth round of six-party talks should be held as soon as possible in order to find a breakthrough in resolving the conflict.

Negotiations between North Korea and the United States, Japan, South Korea, Russia and China in September concluded with Pyongyang's promising to end its nuclear program in exchange for aid, diplomatic recognition and security guarantees. But a disappointing new round of talks ended last week without progress on the difficult next step — how to dismantle existing weapons and verify that the country has really ended all suspicious programs.

"The challenge for U.S. and South Korean negotiators will be to determine what are the legitimate interests of Pyongyang and what is a stall," said CBS News foreign affairs analyst Pamela Falk, "The stakes become higher with the passage of time and the development of the uranium enrichment program in North Korea."

Roh, who has pursued engagement and closer ties with the North, opposes military action if diplomacy fails and is cool to going to the U.N. Security Council for sanctions. Mr. Bush has not taken either option off the table.

But, declared Roh: "We have no disagreement at all that this issue must be resolved."

CBS News senior White House correspondent John Roberts reports that even though North Korea has pledged to dismantle its nuclear weapons program, Mr. Bush is skeptical. The White House says the country reneged on a similar deal to shut down their nuclear program in 1994.

South Korea has resisted the tough approach advocated by the Bush administration for ending the impasse with North Korea, opposing the idea of military action if diplomacy fails. South Korea also is cool to the idea of taking the standoff to the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions.

"The tone is different sometimes because, of course, for the people of the Republic of Korea, the demilitarized zone is right at their doorstep," said Mike Green, senior director for Asian affairs on the National Security Council.

Green said Seoul, the South Korean capital, is as close to the demilitarized zone separating the two countries and to North Korean artillery as the White House is to Dulles International Airport, some 30 miles outside Washington.

"It's very much a clear and present threat for the people," he said.

Many also don't like the U.S. military, which has had a presence in South Korea since the end of the Korean civil war in the mid-1950's. A series of protests are expected over the next two days while APEC leaders meet.

Green, talking with reporters on Air Force One as it flew to South Korea, said Mr. Bush and Roh would discuss ways to strengthen coordination on foreign policy. The objective was to have the pursuit of North-South reconciliation reinforce the disarmament talks, Green said. One proposal calls for a peace treaty to replace the armistice that halted the 1950-53 Korean War.

Mr. Bush and Roh conferred in Gyeongju, the ancient capital of Korea.

Mr. Bush's eight-day journey to Asia offers him a reprieve from troubles at home, where his approval rating has fallen to the lowest point of his presidency. Unhappiness over the war in Iraq has hurt the president's popularity and credibility, and Republicans are nervous about how the war and the president's other woes will affect next year's midterm elections.

Roh has been a major supporter of Mr. Bush's Iraq policy. South Korea is the third-largest contributor of troops behind the United States and Britain, deploying more than 3,000 soldiers. Like Mr. Bush, Roh's domestic approval ratings are down, and his foes call him a lame duck.

Mr. Bush flew here for the annual summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, representing 21 countries that account for about half the world's trade. APEC is expected to call for progress at the next round of World Trade Organization talks in Hong Kong next month toward a global trade agreement.

APEC represents "a significant bloc in the WTO membership," said Faryar Shirzad, deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs. "And so when they speak and lay out an agenda of ambition, it's an agenda that the membership at the WTO takes note of and helps drive the negotiating dynamics in a constructive way."

In addition to the APEC meetings, the president will hold separate talks with the leaders of Malaysia, Russia and Indonesia before traveling to China on Saturday.

Looking ahead to talks about North Korea, Mr. Bush said his objective was to remind his partners that they need to stick together and send a consistent message.

The most recent round of negotiations adjourned Friday with no sign of progress, but it's likely they will resume in Beijing next month or in January. In September, North Korea promised to end its nuclear program in exchange for aid, diplomatic recognition and security guarantees.

New Mexico governor Bill Richardson is one of few outsiders to see inside North Korea's nuclear facilities, reports Roberts. During a visit last month, he became convinced that this time, the North is serious.

"I think that was a major signal, saying 'Look, we are ready to show you this, we are ready to destroy it, we are ready to demolish it, we are ready for verification. But we want a lot in return,'" Richardson said.

North Korea has insisted that it will not make any move until the United States first offers concessions for giving up its nuclear weapons. Washington has refused the demand.

That hard line puts the White House somewhat at odds with the summit host, South Korea, which is anxious to bring its northern neighbor out of isolation, reports Roberts.

The Pentagon has begun pulling thousands of U.S. troops out of South Korea, where it has maintained a contingent of about 37,000 since the cease-fire amid concerns that the communist North might try to reunite the two Koreas by launching an all-out attack.