U.S. “Congratulations to Roh Expect Cooperation with Situation in Iraq”

The U.S. State Department issued a congratulatory statement right after the Constitutional Court overturned the vote to impeach President Roh Moo-hyun on May 14 saying “[the department] congratulate[s] President Roh.”

The full text of the statement is as follows:

“We congratulate President Roh on the Constitutional Court’s decision. We have enjoyed a very strong and effective relationship with Korea in the past, and we wish that we will enhance our cooperation further. The United States has an intimate friendship with South Korea, and we hope that our friendship will lead to closer cooperation in the future on issues of mutual interest in stability and development of Iraq and the six-party talks.”

Foreign news media including AP, AFP, Bloomberg, China’s Shinhwa news, and Japan’s Kyodo news, and television broadcasters like CNN, BBC, and CCTV, a Chinese national broadcaster, wired the news of the overturned impeachment and the reinstatement of President Roh as a breaking news item.

Foreign media forecasted that President Roh faces a pressing task at hand: improving inter-Korean relations while maintaining ROK-U.S. relations as strong as possible. Some predicted that the troop dispatch to Iraq will be reconsidered with the Uri Party now as the majority party.

Responses from Major Foreign Media—

CNN relayed the live Korean broadcasting of the court’s decision in the morning of May 14, in an interview with Denny Gitting, a journalist from the Asian Wall Street. CNN broadcasted the news as breaking news around 10:30 in the morning when the court made the decision. China’s CCTV also had a live broadcasting of the Constitutional Court’s decision with an expert’s explanation of the situation for an hour or so from 9:45 am.

BBC commented that the decision to overturn the vote reflected the majority of South Koreans’ view exhibited at the general election of April 15. Taiwan’s Central News forecasted that the president will now be more discreet about his conduct in remaining neutral in politics. Bloomberg quoted an expert in that today`s court decision came as no surprise, and predicted that South Korea’s political scene will become somewhat stable.

The Washington Post analyzed, “Roh will immediately face a difficult balancing act: how to forge closer ties with North Korea, a policy supported by a majority of South Koreans, particularly the young, while trying not to alienate Seoul`s main ally, the United States.”

Kyodo News pointed out that the Roh administration needs to have a talk with the opposition since there are many expressing concerns about the Uri Party falling into complacency.

Arabian Satellite TV Al Jazeera also broadcasted the Constitutional Court’s decision on its morning news as one of the main headlines.

Expert Opinions—

Dr. Kenneth Quinones, the former U.S. State Department`s North Korea affairs officer advised, “It is important that South Korea’s ruling party and the opposition calm themselves and that President Roh respects the law and governs with confidence.”

He says, “President George W. Bush should show more respect for the Roh administration,” and adds, “It will also be beneficial to have the Roh administration stabilized for North Korea in forming an economic cooperation.”

Peter Baek, a researcher at Korea Economic Institute, commented, “The decision will serve as an encouraging sign for investors at home and abroad with the political concerns resolved.”

Professor Hajime Izumi of Shizuoka Prefectural University asserted, “There may be a huge shift in the future political development with the reinstatement of President Roh just as the Uri Party has recently become the majority party in the Assembly, which will be determined by how the legislation and the executive establish their relationship and which role they will assume.”

He analyzed, “It is a time of chaos with no room for predictions,” and that “it will only be possible to make any forecast about the impending issues, such as, the troop dispatch to Iraq and the nuclear problems with the North Korea, once the National Assembly reopens in June.”

Jin Lee leej@donga.com