US President George W Bush today renewed his claims that North Korea was "evil" and called on the Pyonyang government to open its border with the South.
However, Mr Bush tempered the rhetoric with renewed calls for dialogue with the North, particularly on weapons of mass destruction, and praised South Korean President Kim Dae-jung's "Sunshine Policy" toward the North as a "vision of reconciliation over rivalry."
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President George W Bush
and South Korean President Kim Dae-jung Reuters |
"I will not change my opinion on (North Korean leader) Kim Jong-il until he frees his people and accepts genuine proposals from countries such as South Korea to dialogue," Mr Bush said after talks with the South Korean president in Seoul.
Both leaders said their talks had been frank - diplomatic code for saying they differed. But they shared a common goal and did not need to march in lockstep, as a US official put it.
Political analysts said Mr Bush and Mr Kim appeared to have found enough in common to bridge perceived policy gaps, particularly since Mr Bush described North Korea as part of an "axis of evil" last month.
Mr Bush made clear the bottom line was a change in Mr Kim Jong-il's ways.
"We're peaceful people. We have no intention of invading North Korea," said Mr Bush, on the second leg of an Asian tour that began in Japan and will take him to China tomorrow.