Global effort needed against nukes in North

The international community should step up efforts to dismantle North Korea’s nuclear weapons programs because they pose a serious risk to global security and nuclear safety, an issue highlighted by the recent nuclear crisis in Japan, a ranking South Korean official said.

Delivering a keynote speech at a summit on nuclear energy in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday, South Korea’s Second Vice Foreign Minister Min Dong-seok said North Korea’s nuclear facilities, including its recently revealed uranium enrichment program, could have major political and social consequences for the world.

“In defiance of the international community’s repeated calls for denuclearization, North Korea has pursued nuclear weapons programs, announced withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and conducted two nuclear tests,” Min said. The treaty aims to limit the spread of nuclear weapons.

Denouncing the North’s newest nuclear program as a “clear violation” of UN resolutions and a 2005 agreement among member nations of the six-party denuclearization talks, the minister called for a “unified and resolute” response to push North Korea to abandon its nuclear programs in a “complete, verifiable and irreversible manner,” according to a transcript of his speech released by South Korea’s foreign ministry.

“We are also concerned about the safety of North Korea’s nuclear facilities,” Min said. “Pyongyang’s failure to comply with international standards in constructing nuclear facilities spells high vulnerabilities for the region in the event of a natural disaster.”

Japan’s nuclear crisis has sparked concern in South Korea that it may fall victim to a possible disaster at North Korea’s nuclear plants.

“To learn from the recent accident, the three Northeast Asian countries - South Korea, Japan and China - will make efforts to strengthen trilateral cooperation in nuclear safety,” Min said. “Such efforts need to take place on the international level.”

Yonhap

한글 관련 기사 [CBS노컷]

외교차관, 북핵에 대한 국제사회 단호한 대응 촉구

민동석 외교통상부 제2차관이 북한의 핵개발에 대한 국제사회의 단호한 대응을 촉구했다.

우크라이나 키예프에서 열리고 있는 `원자력 안전 정상회의`에 참석 중인 민 차관은 19일 기조연설을 통해 "북한의 우라늄농축프로그램(UEP)이 9.19공동성명과 유엔 안보리 결의에 대한 명백한 위반"이라며 국제사회의 단호한 대응을 주문했다.

민 차관은 특히 북한의 핵능력 뿐만 아니라 핵시설 안전성에 대해서도 우려를 표명하면서 북한이 모든 핵 프로그램을 포기할 것을 촉구했다.

아울러 민차관은 내년 우리나라에서 열리는 핵안보정상회의 준비 현황을 소개하고 이에 대한 참여국들의 관심과 지지를 요청했다.

이번 원자력 안전 정상회의는 체르노빌 원전 사고 25주년을 맞아 개최됐으며, 반기문 유엔 사무총장을 비롯해 푸틴 러시아 총리, 나자르바예프 카자흐스탄 대통령 ,아마노 IAEA 사무총장 등 65개국 및 국제기구 수장들이 참석했다.