SEOUL - PRESS BULLETIN; June 25, 2009

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SEOUL 001013 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR ECON KPAO KS US SUBJECT: SEOUL - PRESS BULLETIN; June 25, 2009 TOP HEADLINES -------------- Chosun Ilbo "National Universities Should Increase Admission Quota for Students from Provincial Areas and Businesses Should Make Efforts to Protect the Weak" President Lee Continues to Make Remarks Aimed at Ordinary Citizens JoongAng Ilbo, Segye Ilbo, Seoul Shinmun OECD: "ROK Economy will Grow 3.5 Percent Next Year, the Highest among OECD Members" Dong-a Ilbo, KBS Send-off Ceremony Held for Remains of Korean War Dead Hankook Ilbo Confrontation, Conflict, Feud... ROK Torn Apart by Ideology The Middle-of-the-Road Should Come Forward to Maintain the Balance in ROK Society Hankyoreh Shinmun Undisguised Attempt by Lee Myung-bak Administration and Ruling Party to "Control MBC" DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS -------------- A senior Blue House official told reporters yesterday that the envisioned "five-way consultations" are not a new dialogue framework to replace the Six-Party Talks but a new approach to bring North Korea back to the Six-Party Talks. (Dong-a) INTERNATIONAL NEWS -------------- According to the AP, U.S. defense and counter-proliferation officials said that intelligence suggests that North Korea will likely fire short and medium-range missiles, given the splash-down zone mentioned in the North's latest notice of "military exercises" and other activities that are consistent with these types of launches. (Hankook, Segye, Seoul, KBS) According to a diplomatic source in Washington, some senators, including Republican Sen. Sam Brownback, are opposing the confirmation of Kurt Campbell as Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, while calling for the re-designation of North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. (Chosun) MEDIA ANALYSIS -------------- -N. Korea -------------- Conservative Dong-a Ilbo carried a quote from a senior Blue House official, who told reporters yesterday that the envisioned "five-way consultation" is not a new dialogue framework to replace the Six-Party Talks but a new approach to bring North Korea back to the Six-Party Talks. Most media replayed a June 23 AP report citing U.S. defense and counter-proliferation officials as saying that intelligence suggests that North Korea will likely fire short and medium-range missiles, given the splash-down zone mentioned in the North's latest notice of "military exercises" and other activities that are consistent with these types of launches. -Iran SEOUL 00001013 002 OF 002 -------------- Newspapers reported the remarks which President Barack Obama made on June 23 about the Iranian situation, quoting him as saying: "The U.S. and the international community have been appalled and outraged by the threats, the beatings and imprisonments of the last few days." Newspapers carried the following headlines: "Obama Questions Iran Vote; He Breaks Silence and Sends Strong Message" (conservative Chosun Ilbo, right-of-center JoongAng Ilbo, moderate Hankook Ilbo, conservative Segye Ilbo, moderate Seoul Shinmun); Obama Shifts from a 'Cautious' to a Hard-line Approach" (conservative Dong-a Ilbo); and "Chilly Winds Blow Again between U.S. and Iran" (left-leaning Hankyoreh Shinmun) FEATURES -------------- FIVE-WAY TALKS NOT INTENDED TO REPLACE SIX-PARTY TALKS BUT (ONLY) TO PERSUADE NORTH KOREA (Dong-a Ilbo, June 25, page 6) By Reporter Cheong Young-gwan On June 24, the Blue House stressed that the five-way talks (proposed by President Lee Myung-bak) to resolve the North the other five nations to meet and Korean nuclear issue are not intended to put pressure on North Korea but to persuade the North to come back to the Six-Party Talks. A senior Blue House official told reporters that the envisioned "five-way consultation" is not a new dialogue framework to replace the Six-Party Talks but a new approach to bring North Korea back to the Six-Party Talks. He noted, "With North Korea boycotting the Six-Party Talks, this proposal is designed (to provide a means) for the other five nations to find the greatest possible common denominator," adding, "It is not a talk or meeting but a consultation." Regarding Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Qin Gang's statement a day earlier that "We think that the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula should be achieved through the Six-Party Talks," the Blue House official said, "(The statement) made no mention of opposition (to the five-way talks). There is no disagreement among the five countries about the goal of bringing the North back to the dialogue and dismantling its nuclear (weapons.) This also holds true for China." STEPHENS