"The North Korean regime must commit to help us verify the declaration and address outstanding concerns about its behavior, including its proliferation and uranium enrichment,” he said.

He said the U.S. is seeking a Korean Peninsula free of all nuclear weapons and oppression. "The United States joined with China, South Korea, Japan, and Russia to create the six-party talks, which led North Korea to pledge to dismantle its nuclear facilities and abandon its nuclear weapons,” he recalled.

Bush appears determined to keep up the pressure on North Korea and use the Asia trip as an opportunity to speak his mind on the Stalinist country. Concerning human rights, he said the U.S. will continue to urge Pyongyang to end its harsh rule and respect the dignity and human rights of the North Korean people.

How the North will react remains to be seen, given that the U.S. will apparently put off striking the North from a list of state sponsors of terrorism over its failure to agree to a system for verifying its declaration of nuclear weapons and programs.

Observers in Washington speculate that latent conflict between Pyongyang and Washington will flare up again if no verification regime is established by next Monday, the date when the U.S. was expected to strike the North from the list.

Bush, in Beijing to attend the opening ceremony of the Olympics, also mentioned human rights situation in China. "The President stands in firm opposition to China's detention of political dissidents, human rights advocates, and religious activists,” the statement said. Bush “continues to speak out for a free press, freedom of assembly, and labor rights. Trusting people with greater freedom is the only way for China to develop its full potential."

When Bush was inaugurated, the U.S. had free trade agreements with only three foreign countries, but it has now signed FTAs with 14, including Asian-Pacific nations such as Australia and Singapore, the statement points out. It quotes Bush as "looking forward to resuming trade negotiations with Thailand," which stalled due to a military coup two years ago. The U.S. “has supported the vision of a Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific, which would bring down trade barriers across the region,” it added.

(englishnews@chosun.com )