Getting the genie back into the bottle

摘要

In A series of meetings with Asian leaders at the end of this week, George Bush will be trying to prevent a new security crisis from emerging on the Korean peninsula, following North Korea's admission that, in defiance of its promises, it has been secretly enriching uranium that can be used to make nuclear weapons. China's President Jiang Zemin, now on his farewell visit to America as head of state, will be a crucial interlocutor. But Mr Bush may find it hard to persuade him that the North's misbehaviour is as worrying as it looks. Mr Bush's summitry begins on Friday at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, where he is due to have a barbecue lunch (a highly-prized honour, according to the official Chinese media) with Mr Jiang, followed by an hour or so of discussions accompanied only by interpreters. On the following day, the two leaders will join 18 others in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, at an annual meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum. In the margins of this gathering, Mr Bush was also due to meet Japan's prime minister, Junichiro Koizumi, South Korea's president, Kim Dae-jung, and Russian officials-all of whose support he needs in his efforts to resolve the North Korean problem without complicating his strategy for dealing with Iraq.