ID :
200523
Thu, 08/11/2011 - 00:44
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/200523
The shortlink copeid
US urges N. Korea's 'restraint' after shelling incident
WASHINGTON, Aug. 10 (Yonhap) -- The United States called Wednesday for North Korea to show "restraint" after the communist nation fired several artillery rounds into waters near South Korea earlier in the day.
The South said it returned warning shots but there was neither a direct clash nor casualties.
"We call on the DPRK to exercise restraint," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said at a press briefing. "What we want to see, as you know, is a continued improvement and improvement in the relationship between the North and the South."
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea is North Korea's official name.
The Yellow Sea has long been a flash point between the two Koreas as Pyongyang refuses to accept a de-facto maritime border there.
In March 2010, 46 South Korean sailors were killed when their corvette was sunk by a North Korean torpedo in the area. Eight months later, the North launched an artillery barrage at a South Korean border island, killing two marines and two civilians.
The United States apparently won't let the latest incident derail its move to engage Pyongyang. The two sides resumed high-level dialogue in late July and the U.S. is weighing additional talks.
"Our understanding is that this exchange of fire has now ended. That's a good thing," Nuland said.
She added, "We want to see the North begin to take steps along the lines that we discussed in New York, so that we can get back to th six-party talks. But that's going to require a further commitment on their part to their obligations on the nuclear side."
She was referring to two days of meetings between North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan and the U.S. Special Representative for North Korea policy Stephen Bosworth.
The South said it returned warning shots but there was neither a direct clash nor casualties.
"We call on the DPRK to exercise restraint," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said at a press briefing. "What we want to see, as you know, is a continued improvement and improvement in the relationship between the North and the South."
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea is North Korea's official name.
The Yellow Sea has long been a flash point between the two Koreas as Pyongyang refuses to accept a de-facto maritime border there.
In March 2010, 46 South Korean sailors were killed when their corvette was sunk by a North Korean torpedo in the area. Eight months later, the North launched an artillery barrage at a South Korean border island, killing two marines and two civilians.
The United States apparently won't let the latest incident derail its move to engage Pyongyang. The two sides resumed high-level dialogue in late July and the U.S. is weighing additional talks.
"Our understanding is that this exchange of fire has now ended. That's a good thing," Nuland said.
She added, "We want to see the North begin to take steps along the lines that we discussed in New York, so that we can get back to th six-party talks. But that's going to require a further commitment on their part to their obligations on the nuclear side."
She was referring to two days of meetings between North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan and the U.S. Special Representative for North Korea policy Stephen Bosworth.
