Bill Clinton: “Well, first of all, that's precisely what we want to avoid. We want to avoid the situation where the IAEA can no longer…”

“Well, first of all, that's precisely what we want to avoid. We want to avoid the situation where the IAEA can no longer certify that North Korea is nonnuclear. So you're in the worst of both worlds; you don't know whether it is, but you can't say that it isn't. That is what we're trying to avoid. Secondly, you should understand that perhaps next only to South Korea, both China and Japan are deeply interested in the same objective. They do not wish to have a nuclear North Korea. And so they support the policy of trying to prevent that from happening. All three of those countries have a great deal of sensitivity about what is most likely to bring about that result. They are worried about whether sanctions would backfire. And we have discussed with them some other options, perhaps taking a more comprehensive approach to all the differences between us in an attempt to demonstrate again to North Korea that they have nothing to be afraid of from an honest dialog with the South and from allowing the inspectors to come back in. So we are looking at what some other options are now. But this is a very important issue, and the United States, I think, clearly has the responsibility to lead on this issue. And we are doing our best to do it. We are on top of it. And I know there are those who think we should have taken a different course, who think, well, maybe we just haven't been involved in this. But I would remind you that South Korea, Japan, and China are intimately interested and personally affected by those developments. And we have consulted extensively with all three of them all along the way, and we are pursuing the policy we think has the best chance of success. Japan”