VIETNAM: Pacific rim leaders release statement pressuring North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons programme

APEC chairman, Vietnam President Nguyen Minh Triet on Sunday (November 19) read a statement prepared by Pacific rim leaders condemning North Korea's missile launches and its October 9 nuclear test as a threat to peace and security. "We reiterate our commitment to peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia, the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, and our resolve toward a peaceful resolution of the North Korean issue. The APEC leaders express our strong concern over the nuclear situation in North Korea, which could lead to a complicated situation in the northeast region," Triet said at a news conference following the close of a weekend Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. The United States and Japan wanted the North Korean statement to send the strongest possible message to Pyongyang. The statement called for carrying out a United Nations resolution that banned trade of goods and transfer of funds to the North that could aid its nuclear arms programmes. "We stress the need for a full implementation of Security Council Resolution 1695 and 1718. We emphasise our strong support for the six-party talks and are encouraged by the recent progress on resuming the talks. We call for concrete and effective steps toward full implementation of the September 19, 2005 Joint Statement and the early resumption of six-party talks," said Triet. The APEC extravaganza attracted 10,000 officials, businessmen and journalists to Vietnam and was billed as the emerging southeast Asian country's coming-out party. But, as is often the case at pan-Asian meetings these days, it was North Korea that dominated the headlines. All the countries involved in six-party talks to end North Korea's nuclear programmes are in Hanoi except for the North itself. Pyongyang has agreed to return to the negotiating table after a year-long hiatus but no date has been set.

ITN Source | November 19, 2006

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