Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

MR. BOUCHER: He is in Tokyo -- was in Tokyo today. Is that the way to put it? And tomorrow he is in Seoul. I guess tomorrow he is still in Tokyo.

December 9th in Tokyo, he met with Prime Minister Koizumi, Foreign Minister Kawaguchi, Defense Minister Ishiba, Chief Cabinet Secretary Fukuda.

On December 10th he'll have breakfast with the Secretaries General of the three ruling coalition parties before he departs for Seoul.

In his meetings, the Deputy Secretary discussed regional issues focusing on Iraq and North Korea, also expressed appreciation for the recent Japanese decision to send an Aegis destroyer to the Indian Ocean.

In Korea, he'll meet with President Kim, National Security Advisor Yim, and other Blue House officials, Foreign Minister Choi and Defense Minister Lee.

We also have copies of two brief press conferences he gave while he was in Tokyo yesterday.

QUESTION: Are you concerned about rising anti-Americanism in South Korea?

MR. BOUCHER: We're aware of the situation in South Korea. We've always worked very, very closely with our South Korean allies to try to make sure that our presence served both the interests of the United States and the interests of South Korea. Remember, we're there for the defense of the South Korean people and we work very closely with the South Korean Government in making sure we do that in the best possible manner with the least disruption to normal life.

We deeply regret the deaths of two schoolgirls a little while ago. President Bush has expressed his personal sadness and his regret over that tragic incident and expressed our commitment to work closely with the Republic of Korea to help prevent such accidents from occurring in the future and indeed, the US Embassy and US Forces Korea are working actively with the South Korean Government to help prevent such incidents in the future.

At the same time, let me say that we also appreciate the efforts of the South Korean Government and their police forces to ensure the security of US citizens and US forces in South Korea. The Embassy is operating normally.