CAMBRIDGE, England -- The recent summit meeting in Washington between President George W. Bush and President Roh Moo Hyun of South Korea has been hailed as a success. Not by me. The word success is being used by "experts," American experts that is, to describe a process of driving a wedge between North Korea and the other countries of Northeast Asia.
In his election campaign last year, Roh distanced himself from the United States, saying he would put the relationship on a new footing. This was to be one in which the U.S. would have to accept a lesser role in the Republic of Korea-U.S. alliance -- one that would involve a smaller physical presence of the U.S. in the South.
Roh also argued for what we might call "dove engagement" with North Korea, rather than the "hawk engagement" of the U.S. administration. In simple terms, hawk engagement emphasizes the stick in a carrot and stick policy while dove engagement emphasizes the carrot.