U.S. President George W. Bush said Saturday that North Korea "will hear a common voice from the world" demanding it stop nuclear weapons program. Bush, sitting with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi at a weekend economic summit with Pacific Rim leaders in Chile, reiterated that multiparty talks are the only way the U.S. will deal with North Korea on the weapons issue. "The leader of North Korea will hear a common voice," Bush said. On the other hand, Bush lauded the efforts of European nations involved in diplomacy to persuade Iran not to pursue nuclear weapons. Bush was meeting Saturday in quick succession with all four of the U.S.'s partners in now-stalled talks with the communist regime. China was first up, and though neither Mr. Bush nor Chinese President Hu Jintao mentioned specifics after their session, both expressed a commitment to success. Bush was also meeting with the leaders of Indonesia and Canada, part of a nearly 15-hour diplomatic whirlwind Saturday that would have the president covering a range of issues besides the standoff over North Korea's nuclear program: an ongoing currency dispute with China, the status of military ties with Indonesia, bolstering relations with Canada and Russia's apparent pursuit of a new nuclear missile among them.
