Roh, Hu Issue Joint Demand to North

South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao held a summit meeting in Beijing on October 13 and demanded North Korea to keep the non-proliferation agreement on the Korean peninsula and cease all forms of provocative actions that are deteriorating the situation.

On October 12 (local time), the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, the U.S., Russia, China, Britain, and France, plus non-permanent council member Japan reached a virtual agreement on a North Korean Resolution to deal with North Korea’s nuclear test

However, the U.S government has decided to take all viable countermeasures separately together with those of the U.N., including measures against weapons of mass destruction under the Proliferation Security Initiatives (PSI). There are a series of international attempts at the unilateral, bilateral, and multilateral levels at the same time.

Korea-China summit-

President Roh and Hu shared views at a Korea-China summit meeting in Great Hall of the People in Beijing and said, “We firmly oppose North Korea’s nuclear test and do not tolerate it,” said Song Min-soon, a South Korean presidential aide.

The two presidents also backed "appropriate and necessary measures" under discussion at the United Nations against the nuclear test that North Korea claims to have conducted on Monday.

Both Roh and Hu reportedly have agreed to take diplomatic measures, including sending special envoys to Pyongyang through consultation among high-level working groups to resolve the nuclear test issue.

The UN Security Council is highly likely to carry the North Korean resolution at its general meeting scheduled on October 14 after completing the revision process of the legal expression on the draft resolution by October 13.

The five permanent council nations and the chairman state Japan made a compromise on the pending issue because they have accepted China’s demand to merely invoke Article 41 under the Chapter 7 of the U.N. Charter, which authorizes only non-military measures, instead of a blanket reference to the Chapter 7 with respect to the North Korea’s claimed nuclear test.

While the previous draft was written that “all countries were authorized to inspect cargo to and from North Korea, as necessary, to ensure compliance with the sanctions, the new draft has mitigated in written expressions that “all countries are authorized to take "cooperative action including thorough inspection of cargo.”

It keeps the requirement that all countries prevent the sale or transfer of luxury goods, designated military items such as electric trains and material and technology which could contribute to North Korea`s nuclear, ballistic missile or other weapons of mass destruction-related programs.

The latest draft involves a financial freeze on individuals and entities with any connection to North Korea`s weapons or missile programs. Plus, it condemns the nuclear test, demanding that Pyongyang cease its nuclear programs and immediately return to the six-party talks without preconditions.

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