UN chief calls on DPR Korea to continue to abide by Korean War truce

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) to continue to respect the terms of the 1953 Armistice Agreement that ended the Korean War, amid the country’s reported claims that the pact is nullified.

“The Armistice Agreement is still valid and in force. The terms of the Armistice Agreement do not allow either side unilaterally to free themselves from it,” Mr. Ban’s spokesperson, Martin Nesirky, told reporters in New York.

He added that the Secretary-General reiterates the validity and importance of this “critical agreement,” on the 60th anniversary of the pact that ended the war between DPRK and the Republic of Korea.

“The Secretary-General calls on the DPRK to continue to respect the terms of the Armistice Agreement, as it was approved by the General Assembly,” Mr. Nesirky stated.

According to media reports, the DPRK Foreign Ministry last week said it was cancelling the armistice after the UN Security Council adopted a resolution in which it imposed another round of sanctions to punish Pyongyang for its latest nuclear test.

Mr. Ban had welcomed the adoption of the resolution, calling its measures “effective and credible,” and added that the Council had sent an unequivocal message to the DPRK that the international community will not tolerate its pursuit of nuclear weapons and related acts.