Bush to offer concession deal to Kim Jong IL

A South Korean newspaper is reporting that President Bush is preparing to offer North Korean leader Kim Jong IL a huge concession package that would end the Korean War.  Bush and Jong IL may even sign the deal in person.

The nuclear standoff on the Korean Peninsula appears to be coming to an end.  Bogged down in the Middle East and facing a growing erosion of public support back home, President Bush wants North Korea off his back, even if it means offering major concessions.  During his trip to Vietnam in November, Mr. Bush told the Vietnamese leader that he is preparing to dramatically reverse his policy towards North Korea.  He is considering a deal that would end the Korean War if Kim Jong IL, the North Korean leader, agrees to abandon his nuclear weapons program.

A South Korean newspaper called The Chosun Libo has the low-down:

A diplomatic source in Seoul on Wednesday said Bush made the offer during a meeting with President Roh Moo-hyun in Hanoi, Vietnam on Nov. 18. "President Bush made remarks while talking about building a permanent peace framework on the peninsula,” the source said. "As far as I know, he made remarks to effect that he is willing to sign an agreement with the two Koreas.” That means Bush could meet with Kim, the source added.

White House spokesman Tony Snow after the summit said if Pyongyang dismantles its nuclear program, "we are willing to do a whole series of things...including a declaration of the end of the Korean War,” but did not reveal Bush’s offer. According to the source, Bush also said he is willing to offer new economic incentives to the North, though it was not clear what. The offers mark a significant shift in Bush’s tack on North Korea, a country he included in the “axis of evil” and whose leader he described as a “tyrant.”

Presidential security advisor Song Min-soon in a briefing after the summit said the two leaders discussed “measures that can be taken such as economic aid, regime security guarantees and a peace framework if North Korea dismantles its nuclear program.” Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Yoon Tae-young on Wednesday declined to confirm Bush’s offer. "We can’t confirm what was discussed during a summit, especially what the president of the other side said,” Yoon stated.

By these concessions, President Bush is acknowledging that his six-year policy of outsourcing the North Korea negotiations to China has amounted next to nothing.  Bush may also be trying to save his legacy.  There are three civil wars going on in the Middle East (Iraq, Lebanon and Israeli-Palestinian conflicts), his approval rating is in the low-30s and his domestic agenda is shot due to the recent Democratic House and Senate takeovers.  He needs at least something positive to be included in his presidential library.

Still, this can't change the fact that North Korea has advanced its nuclear and conventional weapons programs under President Bush's watch.