ID :
52985
Tue, 03/31/2009 - 07:14
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/52985
The shortlink copeid
N. Korea warns Seoul not to participate in proliferation initiative
SEOUL, March 30 (Yonhap) -- North Korea said Monday it will take stern measures if South Korea participates in U.S.-led multilateral efforts to interdict the North's transfer of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, calling it a "declaration of war."
"If the South takes part in the multilateral operations, called the Proliferation
Security Initiative, over our plan to launch a rocket, we will immediately take a
stern countermeasure," the North's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of
the Fatherland said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News
Agency.
South Korea's foreign ministry spokesman, Moon Tae-young, indicated last week
that the South could join the U.S.-led PSI if North Korea proceeds with its
planned rocket launch in early April. Pyongyang says it is aiming to place a
satellite in orbit, a claim Seoul and Washington dismiss as a cover for a
ballistic missile test.
Last month, South Korean Defense Minister Lee Sang-hee said his country may now
need to expand its participation in the PSI. "Under these circumstances, in which
North Korea is developing long-range missiles and nuclear weapons, it is time for
South Korea to reconsider its participation in the PSI," he said at a
parliamentary hearing.
The North's statement also said Seoul's participation in the PSI would represent
a "violent challenge to our dignity and autonomous rights and an unpardonable
crime to lead the whole nation into a nuclear war."
South Korea will be forced to take responsibility for the consequences of its
participation in the PSI, it said.
South Korea has participated in the PSI as an observer since 2005. Under the
previous liberal administration of President Roh Moo-hyun, Seoul limited its role
for fear of straining ties with North Korea, one of the initiative's prime
targets.
The U.S. administration under Barack Obama said that it would seek to expand the
PSI into a global campaign aimed at stopping shipments of weapons of mass
destruction, their delivery systems and related materials worldwide.
The PSI, now with 93 member states, has been routinely criticized by Pyongyang as
an example of Washington's hostile policy against North Korea.
(END)
"If the South takes part in the multilateral operations, called the Proliferation
Security Initiative, over our plan to launch a rocket, we will immediately take a
stern countermeasure," the North's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of
the Fatherland said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News
Agency.
South Korea's foreign ministry spokesman, Moon Tae-young, indicated last week
that the South could join the U.S.-led PSI if North Korea proceeds with its
planned rocket launch in early April. Pyongyang says it is aiming to place a
satellite in orbit, a claim Seoul and Washington dismiss as a cover for a
ballistic missile test.
Last month, South Korean Defense Minister Lee Sang-hee said his country may now
need to expand its participation in the PSI. "Under these circumstances, in which
North Korea is developing long-range missiles and nuclear weapons, it is time for
South Korea to reconsider its participation in the PSI," he said at a
parliamentary hearing.
The North's statement also said Seoul's participation in the PSI would represent
a "violent challenge to our dignity and autonomous rights and an unpardonable
crime to lead the whole nation into a nuclear war."
South Korea will be forced to take responsibility for the consequences of its
participation in the PSI, it said.
South Korea has participated in the PSI as an observer since 2005. Under the
previous liberal administration of President Roh Moo-hyun, Seoul limited its role
for fear of straining ties with North Korea, one of the initiative's prime
targets.
The U.S. administration under Barack Obama said that it would seek to expand the
PSI into a global campaign aimed at stopping shipments of weapons of mass
destruction, their delivery systems and related materials worldwide.
The PSI, now with 93 member states, has been routinely criticized by Pyongyang as
an example of Washington's hostile policy against North Korea.
(END)
