|
Ahead of returning home on August 5 upon completing his three-year term, U.S. Ambassador to Korea Thomas Hubbard said Thursday, "Many Koreans think that North
Korea has become a less of a threat, whereas since the September 11 attack, Americans has had considerable concern over the threat of North Korea, showing that the two countries have different perspectives on the North."
Coming to Seoul on the very day of the September 11 attack, Hubbard made this remark in his last press conference at the Seoul Press Center, adding, "The relationship between the two countries will become more solid if they look at the issue in a large framework and find a common solutions."
He also said, "Many things happened between Korea and the U.S. during my term, but the most difficult one was the death of the two middle-school girls in Uijeongbu [who were killed by a U.S. armored vehicle]. We tried to let the Koreans know that the U.S. really felt heartbroken and sorry for the incident, but it is particularly regretful that our efforts to do so were not sufficiently recognized by Koreans."
Finally, he said, "After going back to Washington, I would like to devote myself to Korea-related work. Since my wife also loves Korea, we will take Korea in our hearts."
(Kwon Kyoung-bok, kkb@chosun.com )
|
