Chris Hill BEATS John Bolton: Bush Declares New Track for US-North Korea Relations
What I reported two days ago about the White House asking Congress to remove North Korea from the State Sponsors of Terror list was confirmed a few moments ago by President Bush.
In a Rose Garden statement, President Bush also suspended sanctions on North Korea that are tied to the "Trading with Enemies Act".
This is huge news -- and is a giant step in putting US-North Korea relations on a new and more constructive track. This is a success for the Bush administration -- and more importantly for Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian & Pacfic Affairs Christopher Hill who has been a punching bag for former US Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton who has been spitting on Hill's deal-making for the last year.
There are still a lot of questions ranging from the interesting issue of North Korea cooperation with Syria's alleged nuclear facility that was destroyed by Israel and other issues -- but when President Bush gave Colin Powell the positive nod in the first week of April 2003 to proceed with the Six Party Talks, Bush and Cheney ignored Iran's offer of a structure for normalized US-Iran relations the very same week in 2003.
The contrast in circumstances between where America is today with North Korea and where we are with Iran is vital to note. We 'engaged' North Korea and blew it with Iran.
Congrats to Christopher Hill, John Negroponte, Condoleezza Rice, the former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs R. Nicholas Burns and his successor William Burns. And for those who want to knock China around, they should know that this entire process was impossible without China's impressive, collaborative diplomacy.
Barack Obama's inclination towards engagement with problematic leaders around the world now is now buttressed by an experience of the George W. Bush administration. Too bad so much of the rest of America's foreign policy portfolio didn't get this same kind of attention.
-- Steve Clemons is Director of the American Strategy Program at the New America Foundation and publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note
One of thing I've learned after almost 8 years of the Bush gang; take what they say with a grain of salt and read the fine print.
This may be the first step in Bush trying to salvage for his legacy what he can from his 8 disasterous years in the White House.
I'll wait for a month of two of analysis before I'll start congratulating anyone.
June 26, 2008 12:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
I thought Bush's position was that he doesn't negotiate with Terrorists!
As North Korea is one of the evil countries in the "Axis of Evil", and clearly a state sponsor of terror, our Government shouldn't have been talking to these "Evildoers"!
Only "naive" politicians like Obama negotiate with terrorists according to Bush and McCain...
Do these two see the disconnect between their words and their actions here? I doubt it!
June 26, 2008 12:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Silly wagon! There isn't any OIL for us to steal in North Korea. Now do you get it?
June 26, 2008 12:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
First we had the Axis of Evil. After dispensing with Iraq (hahahahahah) we had the Segment of Evil. Now that North Korea has a viable nucular bomb (why else would the Coward-in-Chief "cave") we have the Point of Evil ... Iran.
Baaatttteeeerrrrrr UPPPPPP!
June 26, 2008 12:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
so what did george bush get in June of 2008 that he couldn't have got in 2001 ???
not a fucking thing
george bush played with his dick for 7 years while North Korea BUILT A FUCKING BOMB
now george wants to claim this is some kind of victory ???
it's a perfect illustration of george bush's incompetence, but it ain't no victory
June 26, 2008 1:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
The alleged liberal media will be effusive in their praise of this 'great foreign policy coup' by Bush, but then a month from now, the odious details will come out.
Bush will point to his legacy as neutralizing Iraq, North Korea, and some kind of deep shit he's going to get us into with Iran will be proclaimed as the end of the Axis of Evil, and thus saving us from world wide terrorism.
June 26, 2008 3:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
By the way, the DOW is down over 340 points and 3 Marines were killed in Iraq today.
North Korea....heh heh heh.
June 26, 2008 3:54 PM | Reply | Permalink