SEOUL, South Korea - President Barack Obama arrived here Friday to offer solace to a country still traumatized by the sinking of the ferry that killed scores, as well as a show of solidarity at a time when the Korean Peninsula is rife with tensions.
With North Korea threatening provocations like long-range missile tests or even a fourth test of a nuclear weapon, Obama warned that the United States, South Korea and their allies would consider levying new sanctions against Pyongyang.
“It is important for us to look at additional ways to apply pressure on North Korea, further sanctions that have even more bite,” Obama said after meeting President Park Geun-hye of South Korea.
But Obama acknowledged that diplomatic pressure alone would have limited impact on a regime that does not play by the normal rules of diplomacy and that has a record of widespread human-rights abuses against its citizens.
“North Korea is already the most isolated country in the world by far,” Obama said. “We are not going to find a magic bullet that solves this problem overnight.”
Park was even more pointed, warning the North on Friday that testing a nuclear bomb would dissolve any prospect for a resumption of multiparty talks over Pyongyang’s nuclear program or a rapprochement between the North and South. “That is going to fundamentally change the northeast Asian security landscape,” she said.
This visit was Obama’s fourth to South Korea, the most he has made as president to any Asian country.
Before sitting at a long table across from Park, Obama thanked the South Korean leader for making time to see him even though the ferry rescue and recovery effort were still underway. “I’m very mindful that my visit comes at a time of mourning for the people of this nation,” he said.
Obama presented Park with an American flag that he said had flown over the White House on April 16, the day the ferry, the Sewol, capsized and sank off the southwest coast of the country. Park thanked Obama, saying “the Korean people draw great strength from your kindness.”
The visit was added to Obama’s itinerary after South Korea appealed to him not to skip Seoul on a trip that included a state visit to Tokyo.
