End Iraq War? Korean War Isn't Over Yet

Bush and Roh spar about closure on 50-year-old conflict
By Sam Gale Rosen,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 7, 2007 12:50 PM CDT
End Iraq War? Korean War Isn't Over Yet
South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun listens as President Bush, not pictured, makes a statement to reporters at the end of their meeting on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Sydney, Australia, Friday, Sept. 7, 2007. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)   (Associated Press)

President Bush got into an unusually undiplomatic tiff with South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun in Sidney today when the latter urged the US to declare a formal end to the Korean War that concluded with a truce—but no treaty—50 years ago. Bush said the US position is to wait until North Korea's Kim Jong Il gets rid of his nuclear program. Roh either didn't understand or didn't like the answer, and asked for clarification.

Then he asked for clarification again. "I can't make it any more clear, Mr. President," Bush finally snapped, visibly irritated. The White House has downplayed the awkward exchange and is saying the two leaders' meeting at the Asia-Pacific summit went well. "There was clearly something lost in translation," says a National Security Council spokesman. (More George W. Bush stories.)

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