U.N. criticized for N. Korea's role in disarmament body

By Lee Chi-dong
WASHINGTON, June 30 (Yonhap) -- A senior U.S. congresswoman strongly condemned the United Nations Thursday for selecting North Korea for the rotating chairmanship of its disarmament body.
In a statement, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) said the move demonstrates "how backward the U.N. has become."
"Time and again, th U.N. demonstrates that it is in dire need of real reform," she said. "The U.N. must place pressure on rogue regimes, not hand them chairman gavels."
She pointed out North Korea's development and proliferation of nuclear weapons and missile programs.
"This is a classic example of the fox guarding the hen house," she said, adding it is no surprise that North Korea was congratulated by Iran and other rogue regimes.
North Korea has assumed the rotating presidency of the U.N. Conference on Disarmament, which opened in Geneva on Tuesday.
Seo Se-pyong, Pyongyang's top envoy to Geneva, said earlier, "(We are) sure that this conference will bring concrete results and will actively participate in it so that it can move forward."
The 65-member U.N. Conference on Disarmament in Geneva is chaired by six nations each year in alphabetical order. A country takes on the presidency for four weeks.
Initially, Cuba was supposed to lead the ongoing session but it requested a change in the order, citing unspecified internal problems.
The conference will be held until Friday and enter a one-month recess before reconvening Aug. 2.
lcd@yna.co.kr
leechidong@gmail.com
(END)