Bush Urges Unity Against N. Korea
In a wide-ranging speech Thursday to officials and university students in Singapore, President Bush urged North Korea's neighbors to make it clear to Kim Jong-il that his nuclear program would not be tolerated.
Mr. Bush's speech at the International University of Singapore touched on everything from free-trade, to avian flu, but underlying all his points was a message of solidarity from Washington to its allies in the region.
CBS News senior White House correspondent Bill Plante says despite the President's seemingly relaxed demeanor, "this trip comes at a critical time in U.S. foreign policy."
The standoff over North Korea's nuclear weapons program is atop the agenda in most of the meetings the president will have during his eight-day Asian trip.
He urged allies in the region to stand firm against a nuclear-armed North Korea and enforce U.N. sanctions against the country for test-firing a nuclear bomb last month.
Globetrotting: Follow President Bush as he travels around the globe"The transfer of nuclear weapons or material by North Korea to states or non-state entities would be considered a grave threat to the United States and we would hold North Korea fully accountable for the consequences of such action," Mr. Bush said.
"For the sake of peace, it is vital that the nations of this region send a message to North Korea that the proliferation of nuclear technology to hostile regimes or terrorist networks will not be tolerated," he said.
Plante reports that the nuclear ambitions of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will also feature high on list of discussion topics between Mr. Bush and Asian leaders on this trip.
President Bush took on anti-free trade Democrats who won control of U.S. Congress in elections last week, saying "America must reject" any tendency toward isolationism.
Outlining his vision for U.S. economic engagement in Asia, Mr. Bush urged Asian leaders to revive stalled world trade talks and give "serious consideration" to the idea of an Asia-Pacific free trade area.
"Only an ambitious Doha agreement with real market access can achieve the economic growth and development goals that this world has set," Bush said in his speech at the National University of Singapore.
The so-called Doha round of talks at the World Trade Organization collapsed four months ago because of differences between the U.S. and Europe over farm subsidies and tariffs, and no new talks are scheduled.
The president is headed to Vietnam this weekend for an annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.
The idea of an APEC-wide free-trade zone was first proposed at the APEC summit in 1994 in Bogor to liberalize all trade by 2010 for developed economies and 2020 for developing economies. Two years ago APEC's business advisory council said a free trade area would harmonize the dozens of bilateral and regional free trade agreements around the region.
"I believe this idea deserves serious consideration. The United States believes APEC is the premier economic forum in the region. It has immense potential to expand free trade" in the region, he said.
A Japanese official said Wednesday that the proposal will be set aside for study until a regional meeting next year in Australia.
U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab said last week the U.S. would like to see the region-wide trade zone develop "over time," but reviving the Doha round still topped the agenda.
Mr. Bush will arrive in Hanoi for this years summit just days after his initiative in Congress to grant the communist nation normalized trade status was dealt a blow by Democrats — many of whom won their local races campaigning on a platform against the outsourcing of American jobs to Asia.
The president emphasized the United States' six decades of cooperation with Asia in helping alleviate poverty, providing security with military forces and promoting the advance of freedoms.
He said the United States and Asian allies should focus future partnerships on combatting AIDS and bird flu, addressing corruption and developing next-generation energy technologies.
Mr. Bush chose this East-West crossroads with a turbulent past but booming present as the stage for the major speech of the trip. A tightly controlled city-state with a significant Muslim population but moderate values, Singapore is considered one of Washington's best friends in the region, a stalwart help in anti-terror and nonproliferation efforts and an active trade partner.
"America's presence in the Far East is very important for our own country," Bush said after a meeting earlier in the day with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. He also had paid a courtesy call on acting President J.Y. Pillay and lauded Singapore's success at integrating its many ethnicities and religions by visiting its Asian Civilisations Museum.
Lee, who often has advised Bush on how to improve the U.S. image, particularly in the Muslim world, seemed pleased with the president's focus. "Singapore is very happy that America has a stake in the region," he said.