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Onus on DPR Korea to denuclearize, General Assembly hears

Onus on DPR Korea to denuclearize, General Assembly hears

Shin Kak-Soo, Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Korea, addresses the general debate of the sixty-fifth session of the General Assembly.
A peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula remains possible but only if the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) gives up its nuclear weapons programme, the General Assembly’s high-level debate heard today.

Shin Kak-soo, the Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Korea (ROK), said his country set out a fresh vision last month for stabilizing inter-Korean relations and eventually uniting the two countries on the peninsula.

As part of that vision a ‘peace community’, an ‘economic community’ and a ‘community of the Korean Nation’ would all be established to promote better relations between the two nations.

But he said many obstacles to peace remain, particularly after what said was the sinking of a ROK naval vessel in March by a DPRK torpedo attack.

“North Korea must take responsibility for its unprovoked attack and refrain from any further provocations,” Mr. Shin said.

Moreover, the minister said that “without North Korea’s forgoing its nuclear weapons programme, no sustainable peace could be achieved on the Korean Peninsula and beyond.”

He called on Pyongyang to “make the strategic decision to live up to its commitments to denuclearization,” or face further sanctions and isolation.

“A nuclear-free North Korea would also open an avenue to saving its people from the current miserable human rights and humanitarian situation.”

Mr. Shin met today with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the sidelines of the General Assembly, and they discussed issues related to the Korean Peninsula, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and peacekeeping operations worldwide.