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United States Democratic Party candidate for president Barak Obama has chosen fellow senator Joseph Biden as his running mate. In announcing his choice, Obama said Biden is someone who is ready for the presidency and is a “rare” candidate who represents change and experience. He said Biden will work with him to, he said, put America back on track.

Biden is someone who can cover for Obama’s weaknesses. It was nineteen months ago that Obama started his long road to victory in the Democratic primary. He has won his party’s nomination, but he is a first-time senator and it is indeed a fact that the United States and the world have some concerns about his experience. There has been particular concern about his lack of experience in the area of foreign policy. During the eight years George W. Bush has been president American foreign strategy has caused considerable discord, and the situation is such that there is even worry about a new Cold War, so there are increasing calls for the a new relationship between the United States and the world.

Biden is a six-time senator and has been chair of the U.S. Senate’s Judiciary and Foreign Relations committees and is considered a foreign policy and security expert within the Congress. As such, he would appear to have the rich experience and insight that will be needed to correct American foreign policy. He recently visited Georgia to talk with that country’s president about potential ways to resolve the situation there. As an internationalist he is of the position that diplomacy should take precedence over strength. He supports American intervention in the world, but says it should be done with the cooperation of the international community and not as part of American unilateralism.

What is of interest to us in Korea is that Biden is knowledgeable about Korean issues like the North Korean nuclear issue and the U.S.-Korea alliance. He has consistently criticized the hard-line policies of the Bush administration towards Pyongyang and emphasizes the need for dialogue. At one point he considered visiting the North to promote a resolution to the nuclear issue. One has hope, therefore, that he will contribute to a permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula. The nuclear issue is the biggest obstacle to peace on the peninsula, and its ultimate resolution is closely connected to improving U.S.-North Korean relations. Obama says he does not exclude the possibility of having direct dialogue with the leader of North Korea. We hope that together with Biden he will help to eradicate all that remains of the Cold War between North and South and presents a new policy towards the Korean Peninsula, one that offers U.S. support for peaceful coexistence.

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