The Bush administration’s focus on Iraq is distracting attention from the nuclear crisis in North Korea, U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee said at a meeting with local Korean-American leaders Thursday.
“While there are some potential threats in Iraq, there are obvious current threats for the development of weapons in Korea,” Inslee said. “We have to treat this at the highest level of attention of American foreign policy.”
Inslee, a Democrat, represents the First Congressional District, which includes south Snohomish County and parts of King and Kitsap counties. The district has the second-highest Korean population in the state, he said.
“This is a family affair (in the First District) and we need to look at this with that degree of intensity,” Inslee said.
Inslee was joined at the meeting by state Sen. Paull Shin, D-Mukilteo, who was an orphan in Korea before being adopted at age 18 by an American soldier.
Shin said Korean Americans in Washington are extremely worried about the emerging crisis, because many still have family members in Korea. He said he hopes the United States works closely with countries in that region to negotiate a solution.
The Bush administration has recently softened its approach toward North Korea in an attempt to reach an agreement. North Korea restarted its plutonium-based nuclear program last month after a U.S.-led coalition in October cut off energy aid promised under the 1994 nuclear freeze agreement.
Inslee said North Korea’s nuclear program is a potential security threat to the United States.
“I want to make sure our current attention in Iraq does not blind us to the challenges and to the promises in Korea,” he said. “We should make sure that this administration’s focus on Iraq does not push to the back burner the situation in Korea.”
Inslee and Shinn urged the United States to have more communication with North Korea in an effort to find a diplomatic solution to the crisis.
Among the 20 Korean Americans at the meeting with Inslee and Shinn was Hazel Bhang, 36, of Mill Creek.
“I agree with what the congressman said. I think a lot of our political attention has been almost solely focused on Iraq,” said Bhang, a member of the Edmonds-based Korean American Community Council. “It’s distressing to see the current administration treat the situation (in North Korea) very differently than the one in Iraq.”
Bhang, who has family members in South Korea, said she’s been watching the situation closely and appreciated Inslee’s interest.
“That was a very pleasant surprise,” she said. “The fact that he was willing to reach out and listen to community members and is engaged in the community is notable.”
Katherine Schiffner is a writer for the Herald in Everett.
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