http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20…

Saturday, Aug. 16, 2008

Cabinet trio visit Yasukuni.

By KAZUAKI NAGATA, Staff writer, Japan Times online.

Cabinet ministers and at least 53 Diet members visited Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on surrender day Friday while Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and two key ministers opted to keep their distance from the contentious landmark, which served as Japan’s spiritual pillar during the war.

Fukuda, Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura and Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura all refrained from visiting the Shinto shrine, conforming with Fukuda’s moderate stance of not antagonizing China and South Korea.

The shrine, which honors Japan’s 2.47 million war dead, as well as Class A war criminals, is regarded by many parts of Asia as a symbol of Japan’s wartime militarism. Friday marked the 63rd anniversary of Japan’s World War II surrender and is an emotional day for many Japanese.

The 63rd anniversary of Japan’s surrender, Former nationalistic Prime Ministers Junichiro Koizumi and Shinzo Abe also paid their respects Friday.

Koizumi was notorious for making annual visits to the shrine while prime minister from 2001 to 2006, including on surrender day in his final year. Each visit provoked harsh outcries from China and South Korea.

Joining them Friday were farm minister Seiichi Ota, Justice Minister Okiharu Yasuoka, consumer affairs minister Seiko Noda and nationalist Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara, who went for a ninth year in a row.

Noda, often regarded as having the best chance of becoming Japan’s first female prime minister, previously visited the shrine when she was posts minister.

When asked if she felt awkward about coming to the shrine while Fukuda did not, Noda said his decision was based on his opinion and the Cabinet was not told to refrain.

“People have different religious views, so (going to a shrine) should be freely allowed,” said Lower House member Yoshinobu Shimamura, who heads a nonpartisan group that visits the shrine together. Shimamura led 52 other Diet conservatives on the annual visit.

Despite the scorching weather, the shrine attracted a myriad of visitors, many there to witness the lawmakers’ visit.

The shrine served as the backbone for the Shinto fervor that drove Japan’s war. Dead soldiers were enshrined there as gods who protected the country, and many relatives of the war dead still go to Yasukuni to remember loved ones even 63 years after the end of the war.

A 56-year-old man from Ishikawa Prefecture who requested anonymity said Yasukuni’s supporters and detractors both have their points, and it is difficult to say what’s right regarding the politicians’ visits.

The prime minister and other ministers may need to be careful about expressing their views too much because “it is a fact that visiting Yasukuni has caused problems,” he said.

On the other hand, while asserting an understanding of other countries’ viewpoints, he said they should not be so critical of a “domestic” issue.

————–

Fukuda sticks to neutral venues: Prime minister honors nation’s war dead at nonreligious Budokan, Chidorigafuchi ceremonies.

By MASAMI ITO, Staff writer Japan Times online.
Speaking at the annual ceremony to commemorate Japan’s war dead at Nippon Budokan Hall in Tokyo, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda on Friday touched on the country’s wartime responsibility to its neighbors and renewed the nation’s pledge to never again wage war.

Friday marked the 63rd anniversary of the public radio address made by Emperor Hirohito, posthumously known as Showa, announcing Japan’s surrender, ending World War II.

Fukuda, echoing several of his predecessors, expressed “deep remorse” to all of the war dead, adding that Japan caused “tremendous damage and suffering to the people of many countries, particularly to those of Asian nations.”

Fukuda, widely known for his relatively dovish stance toward Asia, did not visit the contentious war-linked Yasukuni Shrine, which many parts of Asia in particular regard as a symbol of Japan’s past militarism.

Instead, he attended the war dead commemoration ceremony and visited the religiously unaffiliated Chidorigafuchi war memorial, near Yasukuni, dedicated to unknown Japanese service members.

The national ceremony at Nippon Budokan Hall is held every Aug. 15 in honor of the 2.3 million Japanese service members and 800,000 Japanese civilians who died in the war, including those killed by massive U.S. air raids on major cities and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

“We have not forgotten for even a moment that the peace and prosperity of today was created because of the sacred sacrifices of those who lost their precious lives in the war,” Fukuda said during the ceremony.

Others in attendance included Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko, lawmakers from various parties, the speaker of the Lower House and the president of the Upper.

“Looking back on history, I earnestly hope the horrors of war will not be repeated,” the Emperor said.

“Together with the public, I pay a heartfelt tribute to those who lost their lives on the battlefield and fell in the ravages of war, and pray for world peace and further development of our country.”

According to the health ministry, 4,579 relatives of the war dead attended the ceremony. More than 60 years after the war, their numbers are dwindling at the annual ceremony. Nearly half are 64 years old or older.

The oldest living relative is 95 years old but asks that his name be withheld. The youngest are two 9-year-old great-grandchildren of fallen servicemen.

During the ceremony, House of Representatives Speaker Yohei Kono urged the government to build a nonreligious war memorial hall to replace Yasukuni Shrine.

In 2002, Fukuda himself proposed such a hall, while stressing it could coexist with Yasukuni, not replace it.

Fukuda’s proposal, however, was shelved by conservative politicians who feared it would diminish the shrine’s role.

“The government should seriously consider establishing a memorial facility that is not based on a particular religion and one where everyone can unite and pay tribute,” Kono said. “Our nation and our neighboring countries still have unresolved issues related to history that have become a thorn and are causing friction.”

Meanwhile, at a news conference Friday, Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said the government “does not need to take action” immediately to push for the alternative memorial facility.

Yasukuni Shrine, located in Chiyoda Ward, has become a cause of strain between Japan and neighboring parts of Asia in part because of the Class-A war criminals enshrined along with Japanese service members who died fighting for Japan.

Every year, the spotlight shines on the shrine and whether the prime minister and any of his Cabinet ministers will pay a visit.

—————-

War widow - now 94-year old -  goes to first ceremony. Her husband was killed  in the Philippines.

Kyodo News, Over the past 63 years, Yotsu Iimura had not joined the annual national memorial ceremony on Aug. 15 to commemorate the war dead.

But this year, the 94-year-old decided to come although she is in a wheelchair, becoming one of the oldest relatives of the war dead attending the ceremony, which is seeing fewer and fewer participants as the survivors pass away with the years.

“My heart is too full to talk. I’m really happy,” she said, entering Tokyo Budokan Hall.

This year, 4,579 surviving kin of deceased Japanese soldiers attended the Budokan ceremony. A decade ago, the number was 5,662.

Iimura had hesitated to attend because “many bereaved families had been attending the ceremony,” she said.

“But not much time is left for me, either. I feel lonely since fewer families are attending,” she said.

Iimura’s husband, Shoji, was killed in action on Luzon Island in the Philippines at age 31. He had been a refrigerator maker before being drafted in 1944. Iimura learned in 1947 that her husband was dead.

———————–
WASHINGTON (Kyodo) -  William Bunce, who helped disestablish Shinto as Japan’s state religion during the Allied Occupation, died of chronic pneumonia in Maryland on July 23, The Washington Post reported Thursday. He was 100.

But Bunce allowed Shinto, stripped of its nationalism, to continue and believers to worship privately, it said.

A native of Ohio, Bunce earned a master’s degree in history from Ohio State University in 1933 and taught English at a Japanese junior college during the 1930s, according to the Washington Post.

After the Occupation, he became a diplomat and served at embassies in India and South Korea before retiring in 1971.

The World Values Survey is available at: www.worldvaluessurvey.org www.happyplanetindex.org

Download the reports
Download the Happy Planet report (2006, pdf)
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See the Global HPI map:  http://www.happyplanetindex.org/map.htm

Sunday, Aug. 3, 2008

Fukuda vows action on oil, terror: Anticlimactic Cabinet reshuffle casts doubt on prime minister’s ability to tackle tough issues

By MASAMI ITO
Staff writer Japan Times online.

Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda vowed to tackle pressing issues like surging oil prices and participation in the “war on terrorism” as his new Cabinet was officially launched at an attestation ceremony at the Imperial Palace on Saturday.

New crew: Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and his new Cabinet head for a photo session after holding their first Cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister’s Official Residence on Saturday.

“I will give everything I’ve got in building a government that puts itself in the people’s shoes, a foundation in which people can live without worry, and an economic society in which the people can feel affluence,” Fukuda said in a statement. “And at the same time I will do my best to contribute to the peace and stability of the world and resolve the global environmental issues.”

On diplomacy, Fukuda stressed the importance of a strong Japanese-U.S. alliance but also vowed to create an open relationship to work “together” with Asia-Pacific countries.

“As a nation that actively cooperates to realize peace, I will cooperate with the international society in the ‘war on terrorism,’ ” Fukuda’s statement said, adding that he will also devote himself to resolving the North Korea’s nuclear, missile and abduction issues.

***

The key issue for the upcoming extraordinary Diet session is whether Fukuda and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party will forcefully extend the Maritime Self Defense Force’s activities in the Indian Ocean to refuel multinational naval ships engaged in counterterrorism operations.

The special antiterrorism law that enables the MSDF activities will expire in January.

The LDP’s coalition partner, New Komeito, is backed by Japan’s largest lay Buddhist organization Soka Gakkai. As an advocate of peace, it has been expressing increasing reluctance to help the LDP force the extension through the Diet.

“As a ‘peace-cooperating nation,’ I will promote international cooperation like peacekeeping operations, antiterrorism measures and rehabilitation aid,” Fukuda told a news conference Friday evening after the reshuffle. The comments were interpreted as an intention to extend the refueling activities.

***

On domestic issues, Fukuda especially expressed concern over the recent surge in prices and the aging society due to a low birth rate.

“To solve the two issues, we need to continue economic growth for more employment and an increase in income,” Fukuda said.

On Friday evening, Fukuda reshuffled his Cabinet for the first time since he was appointed prime minister in a bid to boost the stagnant support rate of his Cabinet. Most of his previous Cabinet ministers were selected by Fukuda’s nationalistic predecessor Shinzo Abe, who quit abruptly last September.

Despite calls from within the LDP to have Fukuda choose his own ministers, Fukuda continued on for 10 months mostly with Abe’s handpicked ministers.

But critics say that despite strong expectations, Fukuda’s picks were not that exciting and that is doubtful the new Cabinet lineup will give Fukuda the public support he needs to proceed.

Four ministers were retained, including Machimura and Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura. Three of the previous LDP executive members including former Secretary General Bunmei Ibuki were given ministerial posts.

————-

Sunday, Aug. 3, 2008

Sub developed radioactive leak in Sasebo: U.S.
Tainted water not dangerous but delay in report angers city officials.

Compiled from Kyodo, Staff report

WASHINGTON — A U.S. Navy submarine began leaking water with trace amounts of radioactivity during a port call in late March in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, U.S. Navy officials said Friday. - Leaving a trail: The Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS Houston UNITED STATES NAVY.

The leak was found on the USS Houston, a Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine, after it went to Hawaii for routine maintenance last month, the officials said, confirming a CNN television report earlier.

The officials said the amount of radiation leaked into the water was very low, but the Navy alerted the Japanese government on Friday (Japan time) because the submarine had docked in Sasebo during its travels around the Pacific.

The incident comes at a time when the Navy is trying to smooth over a problem with a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the USS George Washington, which is due to replace the aging, conventionally powered Kitty Hawk this summer as the sole U.S. carrier based in Japan.

In Tokyo, the Foreign Ministry said Saturday it was notified by the Navy that the radiation has “no effects on the environment and human bodies,” with a senior Japanese official saying it is “not a level that should be deemed problematic.”

The ministry, however, came under fire for not disclosing the information sooner after the U.S. government notified it about the leak Friday afternoon in Japan.

The ministry did not communicate it to the concerned local governments because “we judged there was no need to immediately report it since it would not have any impact on humans,” an official said.

The ministry reported the finding on Saturday morning to Sasebo and to Okinawa Prefecture, where U.S. warships make frequent port calls, after the CNN report. But it also said the notifications had nothing to do with the media report.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said about the delay that it is “not good that a media report came earlier.”

“I believe the Foreign Ministry should report a matter of this kind immediately to the prime minister’s office and make it public when it is notified by the U.S. government, because it concerns ‘radioactivity,”‘ Machimura said.

Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura told a news conference that a delay in reporting is “inadmissible.”

Komura said that he became aware of the incident through reports on CNN Saturday morning and immediately ordered appropriate measures to be taken.

“I watched the report on CNN and contacted the ministry” for details, Komura said, expressing regret over the delay of communication.

“Exchange of information should have taken place earlier,” Komura told reporters.

***

Sasebo and Okinawa were notified of the leak only after orders from the minister were made.

***

The Houston crisscrossed the western Pacific from March to June, spending a week in Sasebo in late March and stopping over at its home base in Guam and Hawaii from May to June.

The total amount leaked while it docked in Sasebo, Guam and Hawaii is estimated at less than half a microcurie and has no adverse effects on the environment and crew, the Navy officials said. One microcurie is one millionth of a curie.

***

The problem was discovered July 24 after the sub underwent a regular maintenance check in Hawaii, the officials said, adding that the water had not been in direct contact with the nuclear reactor and that a crew member who was exposed to the water proved to be unaffected.

The Navy reported the case to health authorities in Hawaii on July 25, meaning that a report to the Japanese government came a week later.

The latest development came after a large-scale fire broke out on the George Washington while en route to Japan in May. The fire was traced to crew members smoking near improperly stored flammable materials.

While there was no damage or threat to the nuclear reactor, the ship was diverted to San Diego for repairs. It is now expected to arrive in Yokosuka, Japan at the end of September.

The Navy this week fired the captain and his deputy, saying an investigation into the fire led to a lack of confidence in the leadership of both men.

Op-Ed Columnist, The New York Times
THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN - Anxious in America.

Published: June 29, 2008

Just a few months ago, the consensus view was that Barack Obama would need to choose a hard-core national-security type as his vice presidential running mate to compensate for his lack of foreign policy experience and that John McCain would need a running mate who was young and sprightly to compensate for his age. Come August, though, I predict both men will be looking for a financial wizard as their running mates to help them steer America out of what could become a serious economic tailspin.

I do not believe nation-building in Iraq is going to be the issue come November — whether things get better there or worse. If they get better, we’ll ignore Iraq more; if they get worse, the next president will be under pressure to get out quicker.

I think nation-building in America is going to be the issue. It’s the state of America now that is the most gripping source of anxiety for Americans, not Al Qaeda or Iraq. Anyone who thinks they are going to win this election playing the Iraq or the terrorism card — one way or another — is, in my view, seriously deluded. Things have changed.

Up to now, the economic crisis we’ve been in has been largely a credit crisis in the capital markets, while consumer spending has kept reasonably steady, as have manufacturing and exports. But with banks still reluctant to lend even to healthy businesses, fuel and food prices soaring and home prices declining, this is starting to affect consumers, shrinking their wallets and crimping spending. Unemployment is already creeping up and manufacturing creeping down.

The straws in the wind are hard to ignore: If you visit any car dealership in America today you will see row after row of unsold S.U.V.’s. And if you own a gas guzzler already, good luck. On Thursday, The Palm Beach Post ran an article on your S.U.V. options: “Continue to spend upward of $100 for a fill-up. Sell or trade in the vehicle for a fraction of the original cost. Or hold out and park the truck in the driveway for occasional use in hopes the market will turn around.” Just be glad you don’t own a bus. Montgomery County, Md., where I live, just announced that more children were going to have to walk to school next year to save money on bus fuel.

On top of it all, our bank crisis is not over. Two weeks ago, Goldman Sachs analysts said that U.S. banks may need another $65 billion to cover more write-downs of bad mortgage-related instruments and potential new losses if consumer loans start to buckle. Since President Bush came to office, our national savings have gone from 6 percent of gross domestic product to 1 percent, and consumer debt has climbed from $8 trillion to $14 trillion.

My fellow Americans: We are a country in debt and in decline — not terminal, not irreversible, but in decline. Our political system seems incapable of producing long-range answers to big problems or big opportunities. We are the ones who need a better-functioning democracy — more than the Iraqis and Afghans. We are the ones in need of nation-building. It is our political system that is not working.

I continue to be appalled at the gap between what is clearly going to be the next great global industry — renewable energy and clean power — and the inability of Congress and the administration to put in place the bold policies we need to ensure that America leads that industry.

“America and its political leaders, after two decades of failing to come together to solve big problems, seem to have lost faith in their ability to do so,” Wall Street Journal columnist Gerald Seib noted last week. “A political system that expects failure doesn’t try very hard to produce anything else.”

We used to try harder and do better. After Sputnik, we came together as a nation and responded with a technology, infrastructure and education surge, notes Robert Hormats, vice chairman of Goldman Sachs International. After the 1973 oil crisis, we came together and made dramatic improvements in energy efficiency. After Social Security became imperiled in the early 1980s, we came together and fixed it for that moment. “But today,” added Hormats, “the political system seems incapable of producing a critical mass to support any kind of serious long-term reform.”

If the old saying — that “as General Motors goes, so goes America” — is true, then folks, we’re in a lot of trouble. General Motors’s stock-market value now stands at just $6.47 billion, compared with Toyota’s $162.6 billion. On top of it, G.M. shares sank to a 34-year low last week.

That’s us. We’re at a 34-year low. And digging out of this hole is what the next election has to be about and is going to be about — even if it is interrupted by a terrorist attack or an outbreak of war or peace in Iraq.

We need nation-building at home, and we cannot wait another year to get started.

Vote for the candidate who you think will do that best. Nothing else matters.

————-

From:    mweldon at civic-exchange.org

Hong Kong-based public policy think tank Civic Exchange has released a new report -
Green Harbours: Hong Kong and Shenzhen - Reducing Marine & Port-Related Emissions

This report, which was based on extensive consultation with stakeholders from both government and the private sector, highlights the fact that many private sector port operators and ship-owners have already taken voluntary measures to improve environmental performance, and are willing to do more. However, there is a need for the Government to create a level playing field for all, so that slow implementers do not reap competitive advantage from non-action. The report also outlines case studies of best practice from European and US ports and proposes a framework for the Governments of Hong Kong and Shenzhen to take the lead in setting strategies for emissions reductions.

A full copy of the report can be downloaded from the Civic Exchange website:
 http://www.civic-exchange.org/eng/upload…

A copy of the presentation can also be found on the website at :
 http://www.civic-exchange.org/eng/upload…

Related reports

Marine Emission Reduction Options for Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta Region
 http://www.civic-exchange.org/eng/upload…

A Price too High: Health Impacts of Air Pollution in South China
 http://www.civic-exchange.org/eng/upload…

Lessons for Hong Kong: Air Quality Management in London and Los Angeles
 http://www.civic-exchange.org/eng/upload…

Apologies for cross posting

Civic Exchange is a non-profit public policy think tank based in Hong Kong that helps to improve policy and decision-making through research and analysis. If you would like or further information on Civic Exchange’s ongoing and planned research programmes, please do not hesitate to contact our new Environmental Programme Manger Mike Kilburn ( mkilburn at civic-exchange.org) or visit our website at www.civic-exchange.org.

Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce, Inc.  www.brazilcham.com

“COSAN, the world’s biggest sugar-cane processor, received 368 million reais ($225 million) in government financing to build three power plants, which will be fueled by vegetation waste from crushed sugar cane, as the company seeks to tap Brazil’s growing demand for electricity. The plants will generate 200 megawatts of electricity, the National Bank for Economic and Social Development - BNDES said yesterday in an emailed statement.” (Bloomberg, June 3, 2008)

Luciano Coutinho, President of BNDES and
Paulo Diniz, CFO of COSAN

will speak at

THE BRAZIL ENERGY SUMMIT
June 23rd at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York

They will be joined by an outstanding line-up of speakers, confirmed as of today:
Alan Boyce, President, ADECOAGRO
Marcelo Brito, Commercial Director, AGROPALMA
Antonio E. Castro, Executive Manager, Gas and Energy, PETROBRAS
Francisco Gros, Vice Chairman, OGX
Plinio Nastari, President, DATAGRO
David Neeleman, CEO, Azul Airlines
Henrique Valladares, Vice President, Energy, ODEBRECHT
Joel Velasco, Chief Representative, UNICA ( Brazil’s Sugar Cane Industry Association )
This event will be the most important Brazilian forum on energy matters to take place in NY in 2008. You don’t want to be left out! To register for this event, which will soon be booked, you can do this online.

Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce, Inc.
509 Madison Avenue, Suite 304
New York, NY 10022
Tel: 212-751-4691
Fax: 212-751-7692

COLUMBUS, Ohio (April 5) - Low-cost carrier Skybus Airlines is shutting down Saturday and plans to file for bankruptcy protection next week, becoming the latest of the nation’s airlines to fall because of rising fuel costs and a slowing economy.

Skybus Airlines on Saturday became the third U.S. carrier in a week to abruptly shut down amid rising fuel costs and economic troubles. The airline made 74 daily flights to 15 U.S. cities. The shutdown affects about 350 employees in Columbus, Ohio, and 100 in Greensboro, N.C.

The announcement Friday came less than a year after Skybus started up at Port Columbus International Airport, offering several $10 flights. The airline’s situation worsened in recent weeks, said Skybus spokesman Bob Tenenbaum.

Fuel prices and the worsening economy combined to be insurmountable for a new carrier, said chief executive Michael Hodge.

“We deeply regret this decision, and the impact this will have on our employees and their families, our customers, our vendors and other partners, and the communities in which we have been operating,” Hodge said in a statement.

The airline makes 74 daily flights to 15 U.S. cities, Tenenbaum said. It has about 350 employees in Columbus and 100 at a second hub at Piedmont-Triad International airport in Greensboro, N.C. Employees learned of the shutdown Friday night.

The final flight, taking off from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., was scheduled to touch down in Columbus just before 1 a.m. Saturday, Tenenbaum said.

He did not know how many passengers would be affected but said the company has flights scheduled through Sept. 2. They are eligible for a full refund.

The airline said that all flights were to be completed Friday and that it plans to file Monday for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Skybus is pulling the plug less than two weeks after CEO Bill Diffenderffer resigned to pursue a book-writing career. He was succeeded by Hodge, the company’s chief financial officer for the past year.

Skybus has endured some bumps since it began flying May 22, 2007. Over two days during Christmas week, the airline canceled as many as a quarter of its flights because of problems with two of its planes. Recently, it has been dropping flights and destinations because of high fuel costs.

Skybus offered at least 10 seats for $10 on every flight. The airline advertised an a la carte, pay-per-service flying experience. Checking a bag cost $12 at the ticket counter, for instance, while boarding with the first group of passengers cost $15.

“Most airlines tell you you’re not paying for baggage, but the fact is, you are paying for it,” Tenenbaum said. “It’s built into the cost.”

The announcement adds to a string of bad news for airlines, which have been hurt by a slowing economy, high fuel prices and maintenance concerns.

ATA and Aloha Airlines both stopped flying this week after filing for bankruptcy protection.

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Vision of ROK-U.S. alliance.

By RALPH COSSA, HONOLULU, Saturday, Feb. 23, 2008 — “The inauguration Monday of Lee Myung Bak as the Republic of Korea’s new president will open the door for a revitalization of the ROK-U.S. alliance, a relationship that has been severely tested and strained in recent years as a result of policy differences and more fundamental “vision” differences between Washington and Seoul.”

An increasingly pragmatic approach toward the Korean Peninsula on the part of Washington and the advent of a more conservative, pro-alliance government in Seoul makes improved relations more likely and perhaps even somewhat easier to achieve, but by no means assured. If the alliance relationship is to be truly revitalized, both sides need to take some decisive steps, sooner rather than later.

President-elect Lee has already said he plans to place increased importance on alliance maintenance and that he understands the centrality of the alliance relationship to Korean Peninsula security. But what is missing, in both Seoul and Washington, has been a clear articulation of the continued rationale and vision for the alliance both today and after eventual North-South reconciliation or reunification. Such a vision existed, and was clearly articulated during the Kim Dae Jung and Clinton administrations, but has not really been spelled out since then.

The last time Presidents Roh Moo Hyun and George W. Bush held a summit meeting, they did not even issue a joint statement. The time before that, they issued a vague statement that focused more on multilateral cooperation than on the future relevance of the bilateral relationship. One would hope that Lee, shortly after his election, would issue a broad vision statement about South Korea’s desired future role in Asia and in the world and how the U.S.-ROK alliance fits into this vision.

Kim Dae Jung used to argue publicly and persuasively that South Korea had to maintain good relations simultaneously with its four giant neighbors — China, Japan, Russia and the United States — and that the best, perhaps the only way, that this could be accomplished was through the continued viability of the ROK-U.S. alliance relationship, which provided Seoul with the necessary security assurances to deal with its other three more immediate neighbors.

Does Lee see the future in similar terms? If so, a clear articulation of his vision is needed prior to any summit meeting with Bush. This would then set the stage for a joint statement articulating a common vision for the alliance and its future role and relevance, one that would hopefully be quickly endorsed by U.S. presidential aspirants from both parties (all of whom have a strong record of supporting the alliance relationship).

Lee appears to have already reconsidered his earlier plan to dismantle the Unification Ministry and incorporate it into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. This is both regrettable and fully understandable, for political (as opposed to geopolitical) reasons. But it was not the existence of the Unification Ministry that caused so many problems over the past five years; it was the tendency of its various ministers to continually make statements that undercut the Foreign Ministry’s many attempts to speak with one voice with Washington in dealing with North Korea.

In fairness, the Bush administration had an equally difficult time speaking with one voice on Korea during its first four years, as the vice president’s office continually undercut the State Department’s efforts to reach accommodation with North Korea. Fortunately, Bush has exercised long-overdue leadership in placing his faith and support behind Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her top North Korea negotiator, Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill. One of Lee’s most important early tasks will be to ensure that his foreign and unification ministers speak from the same page, one that he (and hopefully Washington) will actively support.

President-elect Lee has already said all the right things: that his government will remain committed to North-South engagement. Indeed, he has even pledged to raise the North’s per capita GDP sixfold (to $3,000) within 10 years — but only if Pyongyang honors its denuclearization pledges. This dovetails nicely with Washington’s stated position (the views of disgruntled neocons notwithstanding), which stresses the potential pot of gold that awaits the North at the end of the denuclearization rainbow. It is essential that this position not b