North Korea's nuclear weapons capability threatens Russian interests, Moscow's chief negotiator at international talks with Pyongyang said Wednesday, warning the country against carrying out another military test.
"Our interests are under threat," Alexander Losyukov was quoted as saying by Interfax news agency, also cautioning North Korea against a repeat of last October's atomic bomb test.
"I think a very negative reaction would follow another test and that tougher measures would probably be taken," he said.
I guess it's Russia's turn to issue the monthly strongly-worded statement. Next month, it will be China's turn.
8 comments:
Well, LAS, if you remember, the highly effective, highly enlightened United Nations "strongly condemned" the underground nuclear test. After a couple weeks of negotiating among themselves, that was the best they could do. And North Korea responded by threatening unspecified "physical responses."
Those physical repsonses never came probably due to the fact that Russia (and maybe China soon) have said that they would "really really condemn it strongly, in almost the strongest terms possible." So, as you can see, this policy of drawing a line in the sand, then drawing a new one when North Korea (or Iran) crosses it, is really working perfectly.
[sarcasm off]
BTW, Jacques Chirac, aka "Foreign Policy Genius," now concedes that Iran will have the bomb and asserts it's not so bad after all. He says, sure they could destroy Israel, but then Tehran would be razed immediately. Realizing his error, he later sought to clarify his remarks, saying he didn't mean to say anyone wanted to destroy Tehran. Phew! Thanks for that clarification Jacko - we were worried there for a minute.
(I'm not making this up - it's in le Monde today. Le Monde actually has an editorial criticizing him on it. That doesn't happen every day, I'll tell you.)
As a matter of fact after Chirac made these statements he tried to get the journalists to squash the story. He thought they would be complacent judging by the way Franch journalists would have handled the Presidential request
Greg,
//(I'm not making this up - it's in le Monde today. Le Monde actually has an editorial criticizing him on it. That doesn't happen every day, I'll tell you.)//
I saw this in the NYT. When the subject is Chirac, nothing surprises me.
Hi Rocket,
Welcome.
//As a matter of fact after Chirac made these statements he tried to get the journalists to squash the story. He thought they would be complacent judging by the way Franch journalists would have handled the Presidential request//
Chirac has delusions of grandeur. His dream of reviving the Roman Empire with France driving the train, has evaporated. What else can he do to save his reputation and preserve his legacy among the rank and file citizens, except undermine the US?
If Bush were serious about terrorism, we would focus on North Korea.
Hi Baby Hair,
//If Bush were serious about terrorism, we would focus on North Korea.//
Certainly, the entire world should look at NK and consider them a rogue state. Russia and China did their share to expedite the making of this little creature. They should be the ones to fix it.
Same premise as the anti-war crowd's critiques toward Bush and Iraq?
Unfortunately, unless KimIl Jong croaks soon and some other people other than the Communists rise to power, North Korea will always be a rogue nation. North Korea has been a problem since the 1950s. I feel sorry for the people but they have to stand up and try to overthrow the Communists. I know: easier said than done.
BH,
//I feel sorry for the people but they have to stand up and try to overthrow the Communists. I know: easier said than done.//
The concept of emperor worship has evolved (or better yet, mutated) into the present-day NK, and to some degree, China. It is hard to reverse centuries of religious culture.
As is was back in the days of the Han, Ming, and other dynasties, today's "dear leader" is an ancestor to those early emperors. And his people are ancestors of those that followed their leader, as one would a god.
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