President Kim warns against resurgent anti-Americanism

President Kim warns against resurgent anti-Americanism

SEOUL (AP): President Kim Dae-jung warned on Tuesday against
resurgent anti-Americanism among a small group of activists,
reminding South Koreans that Washington remained the country's
"biggest cooperator."

The warning came one day before the United States and South
Korea were scheduled to resume sensitive talks on Wednesday on
revising a defense agreement that critics say infringes upon
Seoul's sovereignty.

Meanwhile, 50 activists engaged in shoving matches with police
trying to prevent them from holding an anti-U.S. rally near the
American embassy on Tuesday.

Waving pickets and shouting slogans, the protesters demanded
that Washington revise the defense treaty - called Status of
Forces Agreement - to allow South Korea bigger jurisdiction over
U.S. soldiers in criminal cases.

"We must criticize wrong American policies but that should not
lead to anti-Americanism," Kim was quoted as saying by his office
during a Cabinet meeting. "Cooperative relations with the United
States should remain strong. Anti-Americanism does not help our
national interests."

Kim's warning was targeted at a small band of activists who
have demanded Washington withdraw 37,000 U.S. troops stationed in
South Korea as a deterrent against communist North Korea.

The activists have stepped up activities amid a rapidly
spreading thaw between North and South Korea following their
summit in June.

Despite the improving relations North Korea, Kim reconfirmed
South Korea needed U.S. military presence for its security as
well as regional stability.

"The United States remains our biggest cooperator not only in
security and international relations but also in economic
relations," Kim said.

Demands for revising the defense treaty gained currency after
the U.S. military apologized last month for dumping 76 liters of
formaldehyde, a cancer-causing chemical, into the Han River, a
main source of drinking water for Seoul's 12 million people.

Activists used public criticism of the U.S. military to demand
its withdrawal from South Korea.

The defense agreement, signed in 1966 and revised in 1991,
governs the treatment of U.S. soldiers stationed in South Korea.
Washington has similar agreements with dozens of countries where
it keeps troops.

Many South Koreans view that some of the agreement's
provisions are too lenient. But talks aimed revising the treaty
have stalled since late 1996.

Under the agreement, U.S. soldiers involved in crimes remain
under the custody of the U.S. military until they are convicted
through the South Korean supreme court. South Korea wants custody
upon indictment or the issuance of an arrest warrant.