Bush, Kim in Back-to-Back Summits

WASHINGTON － President Kim Dae-jung and U.S. President George W. Bush will meet on Sept. 24 in New York, informed sources said.

"President Kim Dae-jung visits New York for a UN special meeting on children from September 20 to 25. President Bush will attend the UN General Assembly meeting on September 23 and 24. Work to set up a summit meeting between the two leaders during this time is near completion," a high-ranking diplomatic source said.

The most likely date is September 24. A September summit would mean that Mr. Kim and Mr. Bush will meet twice in less than a month. Mr. Bush will visit Seoul October 18 before he attends the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Shanghai.

Diplomatic watchers said that Mr. Kim would ask Mr. Bush to endorse his "sunshine policy" and request that the United States make efforts to resume dialogue with North Korea.

Mr. Kim's policy of reconciling North Korea was dealt a blow with the policy's architect, former Unification Minister Lim Dong-won, having been voted down in a no-confidence motion at the National Assembly on Monday.

Analysts said that Mr. Bush, a high skeptic of North Korea, will face a more delicate political task this time around. He would not want to risk endangering the traditional alliance with South Korea and threatening U.S. interests in the Northeast Asian region by belittling the sunshine policy. Both China and Russia have endorsed inter-Korean reconciliation efforts.

Mr. Kim carries his share of political burden, as North Korea has yet to provide opportunities for the United States to more actively engage it in official dialogue.

by Kim Jin