Japan, U.S. warn North on nuclear arms

Home > National > Politics

print dictionary print

Japan, U.S. warn North on nuclear arms

Japan and the United States strongly urged that North Korea dismantle its nuclear weapons programs promptly and verifiably, with a stern warning that the use of weapons of mass destruction would bring dire consequences.

Tokyo and Washington held a "two plus two ministerial" meeting attended by Secretary of State Colin Powell, Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, Japan's Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi and the Japanese Defense Agency's director general, Shigeru Ishiba, in Washington Monday. The foreign affairs and security talks were focused on the war on terrorism and the recently escalated tension on the Korean Peninsula.

"We agreed that North Korea's Dec. 12 an-nouncement that it would restart its nuclear power generation and construction program is a regrettable step backward for the DPRK," Mr. Powell said at a press briefing. "We call on the DPRK to reconsider this decision."

In a statement, the ministers "stressed that North Korean use of weapons of mass destruction, such as nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, would have the gravest consequences."

The ministers made clear, however, that the case would be handled through diplomacy. "We have no intention of attacking North Korea," Mr. Powell said, reiterating past U.S. promises.

"North Korea's relations with the outside world will hinge on its willingness to dismantle its nuclear weapons program," the statement said. Washington reaffirmed it has always been open to dialogue in principle, although it has vowed to not enter talks with the North, unless Pyeongyang scraps its decision to reactivate its mothballed nuclear reactor, thought to be capable of producing weapons-grade plutonium, and stops its activity to enrich uranium. The reactor has been shut down for the past eight years under the monitoring of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Asked if Washington intends to sign a nonaggression treaty to formalize the promise to not attack the North, Mr. Powell said, "The issue of a treaty suggests that we should pay something right now for their misbehavior. What we can't do and won't do is reward North Korea for its misbehavior." Mr. Powell asserted that "the international community, including Russia, China and the European Union, is united in calling for a denuclearized Korean Peninsula."

But North Korea did not flinch. "Blame the United States for creating nuclear crisis on the peninsula," Radio Pyeongyang said. The harsh report emphasized, "It is solely up to Washington to make us freeze nuclear facilities again."

by Ser Myo-ja

Log in to Twitter or Facebook account to connect
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
help-image Social comment?
s
lock icon

To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.

Standards Board Policy (0/250자)