USA/UN: Rice says second nuclear test by North Korea is concern and would lead to further isolation/China says it will uphold promise to impose UN sanctions

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Monday (October 16, 2006) she hoped North Korea would not conduct a second nuclear test, saying this would be a provocative act and would further isolate the country. Rice leaves for Tokyo, Seoul and Beijing on Tuesday (October 17) to try to cement the unified U.N. approach and edge North Korea back toward six-party talks aimed at stopping its program to build a nuclear weapon. "At each of these stops I will advance our diplomatic efforts to implement Resolution 1718 to address common threats to peace and stability and to thwart the ambitions of states that illicitly seek to develop weapons of mass destruction. The purpose of my trip is to rally the support of our friends and allies in Northeast Asia for a comprehensive strategy," she told reporters. Rice said the United States was open to resuming six-party talks with North Korea on ending its nuclear ambitions without any preconditions. The United Nations Security Council voted 15-0 on Saturday (October 14) for tough sanctions against North Korea after it announced it had tested a nuclear device on Oct. 9. Asked about a possible second nuclear test, Rice said, "We're watching it, obviously, and discussing it with other parties as well. I think it goes to say that that would further deepen the isolation of North Korea, and I hope they would not take such a provocative act, because people went out of their way in this resolution to have a strong and firm hand and strong and firm response, but to leave open a door for North Korea to take a different course if it wishes to do so. I would hope that it would meet this firm and resolute response, but yet the openness to return to six-party talks in the way that it was intended." Rice said she wanted to send a signal to Iran it could suffer if it kept pursuing nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful power generation and Washington and its allies are pressing for U.N. sanctions against Tehran. "The Iranian government is watching and it can now see that the international community will respond to threats from nuclear proliferation," Rice said. "So the Iranian government should consider the course that it is on, which could lead ... simply to further isolation." China said on Monday that it would uphold its promise to impose U.N. sanctions on North Korea, but made clear that inspections have limits. China has made clear it is deeply concerned about the consequences of provoking a collapse of the impoverished and highly militarised state and its U.N. ambassador again clarified the limits of its action on Monday. Ambassador Wang Guangya told reporters, "Of course, the question was raised whether China would do inspections. Inspections yes, but inspections are different from interception and interdiction. I think in that area, different countries will do it in different ways. But this is a Security Council resolution under Chapter 7 and Article 41, therefore the resolution has to be implemented." Wang's comments were an apparent reference to stopping cargo at sea, which is one of the U.N. sanctions agreed to on Saturday (October 14). He said the resolution did not make it mandatory for all nations to inspect cargo going to and from North Korea and that states could carry out such an operation as necessary. Most of Pyongyang's trade crosses through China, which has perhaps the most leverage on the reclusive state but fears a flood of refugees if the Pyongyang government collapses. The U.N. sanctions bar trade with North Korea in dangerous weapons, impose bans on heavy conventional weapons and luxury goods and ask nations to freeze funds connected with North Korea's non-conventional arms programs. North Korea agreed in principle at six-party talks a year ago to scrap its nuclear arms programs in return for aid, security assurances and promises of better diplomatic ties. But it has boycotted the talks among the two Koreas, Japan, the United States, China and Russia about implementing that deal for almost a year, soon after Washington imposed earlier financial sanctions over North Korea's alleged illicit trading activities.

ITN Source | October 17, 2006

Tags:. .resolute. .signal. .intended. .resuming. .iranian