ID :
11018
Sat, 06/28/2008 - 10:53
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/11018
The shortlink copeid
G-8 stresses need to verify N. Korea nukes, condemns Zimbabwe election
KYOTO, June 28 Kyodo - The Group of Eight major nations stressed Friday the importance of verifying North Korea's account of its nuclear programs and deplored the political violence in Zimbabwe as their foreign ministers wrapped up a two-day meeting in
Kyoto.
The ministers also expressed serious concern about the proliferation risks
posed by Iran's nuclear program and called on Myanmar to move forward with its
political process by involving all stakeholders and immediately releasing
political detainees, including pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, according
to the chairman's statement.
''We agreed on the need to conduct thorough verification of North Korea's
nuclear declaration and shared consensus that it is important to press forward
with the six-party talks, which have now reached an important phase, towards
the final goal of North Korea's denuclearization,'' Japanese Foreign Minister
Masahiko Komura, who chaired the meeting, said in a joint news conference.
''On the abduction issue, Japan's consistent demand for North Korea to take
concrete action toward a resolution was strongly supported by my fellow foreign
ministers,'' he added.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the United States reassured Japan
on Friday of its shared concern regarding the abductions and U.S.
''determination to see that resolved in an early and positive way.''
Rice also emphasized that there remains ''a long road ahead'' with regard to
the verification process and, despite the thousands of pages of documentation
provided by North Korea, Washington still has ''serious questions'' about
Pyongyang's uranium enrichment and other activities.
''We know North Korea has a record of not living up to its obligations,'' she
said.
Meanwhile, the G-8 ministers said in the statement they ''welcome'' Thursday's
submission of the declaration as ''an important step.'' Several ministers also
noted at the talks that the provision of the list was in itself ''progress,''
according to a Japanese Foreign Ministry official.
The second day of the Kyoto talks came just hours ahead of North Korea's
demolition of a cooling tower attached to its Yongbyon nuclear reactor Friday
afternoon, a symbolic demonstration of the site's disablement. The planned
event, however, was not discussed at the meeting, the official said.
On Thursday, the United States began steps to lift some sanctions against North
Korea following Pyongyang's submission of the nuclear list, a move which Japan
fears could hamper its efforts to maintain pressure on North Korea to resolve
the abductions.
The ministers from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and
the United States also issued an urgent statement reiterating their ''grave
concern'' about the situation in Zimbabwe and ''strongly'' urging the
Zimbabwean government to work with the opposition to achieve a ''prompt,
peaceful resolution of the crisis in accordance with the democratic wishes of
the Zimbabwean people.''
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband condemned Zimbabwean President Robert
Mugabe's defiance in going ahead with a controversial presidential run-off
election Friday, describing the move as having ''no legitimacy,'' and said such
an election, in which violence and intimidation had forced the opposition
candidate to pull out, was ''one-sided.''
Similarly, Rice described the election as a ''sham'' which ''could not possibly
produce a legitimate outcome'' and warned that the United States, as current
rotating chair of the U.N. Security Council, will consult other members about
possibly taking further action at the council.
The ministers spent the majority of their 100-minute working lunch discussing
the issue of Zimbabwe in a stern tone and agreed on the need for the G-8 to
work closely with the United Nations and the African Union.
''This statement was drafted by the ministers themselves, which is rather
unusual,'' Japanese Foreign Ministry Press Secretary Kazuo Kodama said of the
ministers' decision Friday as a result of a strong desire to issue a clear-cut
message. References to Zimbabwe were originally to be issued only as part of
the chairman's statement.
On Iran, the foreign ministers expressed ''serious concern'' and committed anew
to the dual-track approach of pressure and dialogue, jointly calling on Tehran
to respond positively to international calls for it to halt uranium enrichment,
Komura said.
The G-8 ministers also reaffirmed their efforts to support ongoing
Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and agreed to continue support for U.N.
peacekeeping efforts in tackling the humanitarian crisis in Sudan's Darfur,
encouraging countries to provide assistance to the mission.
Another highlight of the day was a bilateral meeting between Komura and Rice in
the afternoon, the first since Thursday's nuclear declaration from Pyongyang
and Washington's announcement to remove North Korea from its list of state
sponsors of terrorism.
''We agreed on the importance to drive forward both denuclearization and
Japan-North Korea relations,'' Komura told reporters afterwards. ''I also
received Secretary Rice's encouraging words that there is no change in
(Washington's) continued support and firm cooperation with regard to the
abduction issue.''
In the opening day of talks Thursday, the G-8 ministers affirmed their
commitment to implementing aid to strengthen the Afghan border against
terrorism and called for constructive dialogue between Afghanistan and
Pakistan.
In addition to Komura, Miliband and Rice, the other members at the talks were
Canadian Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister David Emerson, French
Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Bernard Kouchner, German Foreign
Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, and
Russian First Vice Foreign Minister Andrei Denisov.
The Kyoto meeting, at which the European Union was also represented, was the
last of a series of G-8 ministerial talks leading up to the July 7-9 summit to
be held in Hokkaido, where the world economy, food crisis, climate change and
African development will be key issues.==Kyodo
Kyoto.
The ministers also expressed serious concern about the proliferation risks
posed by Iran's nuclear program and called on Myanmar to move forward with its
political process by involving all stakeholders and immediately releasing
political detainees, including pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, according
to the chairman's statement.
''We agreed on the need to conduct thorough verification of North Korea's
nuclear declaration and shared consensus that it is important to press forward
with the six-party talks, which have now reached an important phase, towards
the final goal of North Korea's denuclearization,'' Japanese Foreign Minister
Masahiko Komura, who chaired the meeting, said in a joint news conference.
''On the abduction issue, Japan's consistent demand for North Korea to take
concrete action toward a resolution was strongly supported by my fellow foreign
ministers,'' he added.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the United States reassured Japan
on Friday of its shared concern regarding the abductions and U.S.
''determination to see that resolved in an early and positive way.''
Rice also emphasized that there remains ''a long road ahead'' with regard to
the verification process and, despite the thousands of pages of documentation
provided by North Korea, Washington still has ''serious questions'' about
Pyongyang's uranium enrichment and other activities.
''We know North Korea has a record of not living up to its obligations,'' she
said.
Meanwhile, the G-8 ministers said in the statement they ''welcome'' Thursday's
submission of the declaration as ''an important step.'' Several ministers also
noted at the talks that the provision of the list was in itself ''progress,''
according to a Japanese Foreign Ministry official.
The second day of the Kyoto talks came just hours ahead of North Korea's
demolition of a cooling tower attached to its Yongbyon nuclear reactor Friday
afternoon, a symbolic demonstration of the site's disablement. The planned
event, however, was not discussed at the meeting, the official said.
On Thursday, the United States began steps to lift some sanctions against North
Korea following Pyongyang's submission of the nuclear list, a move which Japan
fears could hamper its efforts to maintain pressure on North Korea to resolve
the abductions.
The ministers from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and
the United States also issued an urgent statement reiterating their ''grave
concern'' about the situation in Zimbabwe and ''strongly'' urging the
Zimbabwean government to work with the opposition to achieve a ''prompt,
peaceful resolution of the crisis in accordance with the democratic wishes of
the Zimbabwean people.''
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband condemned Zimbabwean President Robert
Mugabe's defiance in going ahead with a controversial presidential run-off
election Friday, describing the move as having ''no legitimacy,'' and said such
an election, in which violence and intimidation had forced the opposition
candidate to pull out, was ''one-sided.''
Similarly, Rice described the election as a ''sham'' which ''could not possibly
produce a legitimate outcome'' and warned that the United States, as current
rotating chair of the U.N. Security Council, will consult other members about
possibly taking further action at the council.
The ministers spent the majority of their 100-minute working lunch discussing
the issue of Zimbabwe in a stern tone and agreed on the need for the G-8 to
work closely with the United Nations and the African Union.
''This statement was drafted by the ministers themselves, which is rather
unusual,'' Japanese Foreign Ministry Press Secretary Kazuo Kodama said of the
ministers' decision Friday as a result of a strong desire to issue a clear-cut
message. References to Zimbabwe were originally to be issued only as part of
the chairman's statement.
On Iran, the foreign ministers expressed ''serious concern'' and committed anew
to the dual-track approach of pressure and dialogue, jointly calling on Tehran
to respond positively to international calls for it to halt uranium enrichment,
Komura said.
The G-8 ministers also reaffirmed their efforts to support ongoing
Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and agreed to continue support for U.N.
peacekeeping efforts in tackling the humanitarian crisis in Sudan's Darfur,
encouraging countries to provide assistance to the mission.
Another highlight of the day was a bilateral meeting between Komura and Rice in
the afternoon, the first since Thursday's nuclear declaration from Pyongyang
and Washington's announcement to remove North Korea from its list of state
sponsors of terrorism.
''We agreed on the importance to drive forward both denuclearization and
Japan-North Korea relations,'' Komura told reporters afterwards. ''I also
received Secretary Rice's encouraging words that there is no change in
(Washington's) continued support and firm cooperation with regard to the
abduction issue.''
In the opening day of talks Thursday, the G-8 ministers affirmed their
commitment to implementing aid to strengthen the Afghan border against
terrorism and called for constructive dialogue between Afghanistan and
Pakistan.
In addition to Komura, Miliband and Rice, the other members at the talks were
Canadian Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister David Emerson, French
Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Bernard Kouchner, German Foreign
Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, and
Russian First Vice Foreign Minister Andrei Denisov.
The Kyoto meeting, at which the European Union was also represented, was the
last of a series of G-8 ministerial talks leading up to the July 7-9 summit to
be held in Hokkaido, where the world economy, food crisis, climate change and
African development will be key issues.==Kyodo
