Secretary of State Warren Christopher, hoping to allay fears over Washington's recent nuclear accord with North Korea, reassured South Korea Tuesday that Washington will honor its security commitments.
And he praised the Seoul government for ending a half-century ban on direct trade and investment in North Korea on Monday, calling that a direct benefit of the historic nuclear deal.Christopher, arriving in Seoul Tuesday on a three-day visit, said the United States will keep its 37,000 troops in South Korea and work hard with Seoul to make sure its Communist archenemy complies with the accord.
"What I'll be emphasizing here is that the United States has no intention of drawing back from its security commitments in Asia," Christopher told reporters on the flight to Seoul.
U.S. officials hope to ease public criticism in South Korea that Wash-ington made too many concessions in the groundbreaking nuclear accord signed Oct. 21.
The North agreed to freeze and eventually dismantle its feared nuclear program in exchange for billions of dollars in economic aid and diplomatic links with the United States.
Although the Seoul government supports the accord, many South Koreans are upset that North Korea will receive $4 billion worth of modern nuclear reactors but has five years to fully open its nuclear facilities, suspected of producing nuclear weapons.