Fargo meets with
S. Korean leader
The visiting president spends
part of a brief isle trip talking
with the U.S. commander
Roh Moo-hyun: South Korea's president discussed issues of terrorism
Roh and Adm. Thomas Fargo, commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, appeared for photos yesterday morning before an hour-long meeting at the Kahala Mandarin hotel.
Roh and Fargo declined to take questions on their discussions, but a spokesman for the South Korean Consulate said the agenda included issues of terrorism and security in the Pacific region. The U.S. military has thousands of troops stationed in South Korea, which falls under Fargo's command.
Roh had participated in the annual 21-nation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Santiago, Chile, during the weekend before arriving late Sunday night at Hickam Air Force Base.
"It's a great pleasure to meet you again," Fargo told Roh as the assembled military and South Korean government officials gathered for their meeting.
Roh, speaking through an interpreter, also noted that this was their second meeting.
"As I recall, we first met last March in Korea," he said. "I'm very pleased to meet you again."
Roh expressed regret that the tight 16-hour schedule precluded a visit to the Pacific Command headquarters at Camp H.M. Smith. Just before the closed-door meeting began, Fargo extended an invitation to visit at any time.
Consul officials said time constraints and a grueling schedule of meetings last week forced the cancellation of a planned excursion by Roh's wife, Kwon Yang-suk, to the McCully-Moiliili Library, where the Korean community had created a Korean-language collection.
The couple met with about 250 members of the Korean community at a lunchtime reception in the hotel's ballroom.
Roh and his entourage left yesterday afternoon from Hickam.