Bush offers North Korea peace treaty if disarms

SYDNEY, Sep 7 (Reuters) President George W Bush said today the United States would consider a peace treaty with North Korea if it gave up its nuclear weapons programme, with an inspection of plants to be disabled to start on September 11.

Bush offered the possibility of a treaty at a meeting with South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun that appeared awkward and tense on the eve of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.

Bush told reporters he would offer a new ''security arrangement'' for the Korean peninsula if North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il followed through with promises to dismantle its nuclear weapons programme.

But Roh seemed concerned that the comment did not go far enough in making clear this meant a permanent agreement to replace the fraying truce that ended the 1950-53 Korean War.

The truce has left the two Koreas, divided by a heavily militarised frontier, technically at war.

Roh leaned over in his chair to prod Bush to be ''a little clearer''.

''We're looking forward to the day when we can end the Korean War. That will happen when Kim Jong-il verifiably dismantles his weapons programme,'' a visibly annoyed Bush finally said.

A Foreign Ministry spokesman for China, which fought along side the North in the Korean War and was a party to the original ceasefire, said Roh had raised the issue in a meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao earlier in the day and Beijing had a ''positive attitude'' toward the prospect of a truce.

But spokesman Liu Jianchao cautioned that the six nations dealing with the North Korean nuclear problem should ''take one bite at a time, one step at a time''.

''All the problems cannot be solved at once, and currently the most critical issue is denuclearisation,'' he said.

Next week, nuclear experts from the United States, China and Russia will visit North Korea to conduct a survey of nuclear facilities to be disabled, US envoy Chris Hill said on Friday.

Hill, speaking to reporters in Sydney, said the team was going at Pyongyang's invitation to the three nuclear powers involved in six-party talks on North Korea's denuclearization.

He said the inspections ''would mark another important step toward denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.'' ''The experts will also engage in discussions on the scope and the technical feasibility of specific actions to be take to disable the ... nuclear facilities,'' Hill said.

Hill, the top U.S. nuclear negotiator, announced in Geneva last week that North Korea has agreed to fully account for and disable its nuclear program by the end of this year.

He said the September inspection was not likely to be the last.

The next phase of the deal calls for a full declaration and disabling of all nuclear facilities in return for 950,000 tonnes of fuel oil, or the equivalent value in aid.

''Our plan is to get this done by Dec. 31,'' Hill said of the disabling plan.

KOREA SUMMIT With a summit between Roh and Kim due in September, Bush asked the South Korean leader to urge his North Korean counterpart ''to adhere to the agreement that he made with us''.

While the United States and South Korea are close allies, Bush and Roh have not always enjoyed an easy rapport. The Bush administration has often been frustrated by Roh unwillingness to follow Washington's tough line on North Korea.

After news reports of apparent tension during the photo opportunity, the White House moved quickly to try and dispel such an impression, blaming the awkwardness on translation.

''There was clearly something lost in translation during the photo op,'' said White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe.

''President Bush considered it a good meeting and both the US and Republic of Korea are on the same page with regards to the need for Korea to comply with its obligations under the six party talk agreement,'' he said.

Bush said he was ''optimistic'' about progress to get North Korea to give up its weapons, but said there was still more work to be done. He insisted the dismantling must be verifiable.

REUTERS SLD PM1625