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Kim Jong-il: "In 2004, Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi visited my country. I told him that I was so keen to meet you that I wanted him to provide music that you and I could sing to together. Didn't you hear about that?"

Bush: "I visited Japan just after that and Koizumi told me the story. But the environment wasn't right for us to meet at the time. But last November, I told South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun that I wanted to declare the end of the Korean War with you..."

Kim Jong-il: "President Roh told me about that. But let's not talk about the past. Despite being hard up, we've made nuclear weapons and test-fired missiles, because the U.S. has never changed its hostile attitude toward us."

Bush: "Yet at every opportunity, I've said I have no intention of invading North Korea. Anyway, now that you've made the decision to denuclearize, let's work together. In 1972, U.S. President Richard Nixon concluded his historic trip to China with a toast in which he quoted a poem by Mao Zedong: 'Time flies... Seize this moment.' This is what I'd like to say now."

This is of course a fictional conversation, but there must be this kind of tacit understanding between Bush and Kim, otherwise it would be unlikely for the U.S. and North Korea to move forward as quickly as they have done.

Only a month has passed since the six-nation agreement was reached in Beijing on Feb. 13 and already the two countries are looking forward to the possibility of a bilateral summit meeting. Last week, North Korea's vice foreign minister Kim Kye-gwan hinted at the possibility of top-level talks, asking U.S. officials, "What use is it for us to talk repeatedly about the same things?"

Bush may be thinking of Nixon's legacy. In 1993, Nixon said, "I will be remembered in history for two episodes -- the Watergate scandal and the normalization of diplomatic relations between the U.S. and China." With his term of office ending in less than two years, Bush would probably like to leave behind at least one positive achievement.

Returning to the realm of imagination, we can see Bush wanting to say something like this: "I will be remembered in history for two episodes -- my failure in the war on terror, including the Iraq War, and my success in leveling the last wall of the Cold War by normalizing diplomatic relations between the U.S. and North Korea."

With a U.S.-North Korean summit on his report card, Bush, who has so far received failing grades in diplomacy, might jump to the head of the class--and even take home a Nobel Peace Prize. A similar meeting with Kim Jong-il did just that for Kim Dae-jung.

No matter what, a U.S.-North Korean summit would be a historic step forward and a welcome event. The harsh words between both sides would be forgotten in the diplomatic arena where yesterday's enemies become today's allies. But before this happens, I'd like to direct some questions to President Bush:

First, whenever the North Korean nuclear issue came up, you stressed the policy of "CVID" (complete, verifiable, and irreversible dismantlement). Are you tossing this policy out? It seems North Korea might be copying the example of Pakistan, which has maintained diplomatic relations with the U.S. without giving up its nuclear weapons. Pakistan's counterpart is another nuclear power, India. Unfortunately, South Korea has no nuclear weapons.

Second, in the past you constantly cited Pyongyang's dismal record on human rights. In fact, your pressure in this area has been helpful in turning international attention to the human rights situation in North Korea. So why is it that you don't mention the topic these days?

Third, in negotiations with China over the establishment of relations, Henry Kissinger, Nixon's emissary, said, "We will make sure that the U.S. forces will be pulled out of South Korea on a gradual basis and Japan will not be allowed to watch for an opportunity to fill the void." When Albright visited North Korea, a U.S. military officer stationed in South Korea said, "I wonder whether the day will come when we participate in a joint military exercise with the North Korean Army." What will you tell Kim Jong-il about the future of U.S. forces in South Korea and the South Korean-U.S. alliance?

The column was contributed by Joo Yong-joong from the Chosun Ilbo's International News Division.