Roh Calls for Multilateral Talks on NK Nuke Row
2003-03-19
President Roh Moo-hyun said Tuesday (March 18) that the international standoff over North Korea's nuclear programs should be resolved peacefully within a multilateral framework involving not only the two Koreas and U.S., but also other countries.
In his congratulatory speech at the 51st ROK Air Force graduation ceremony at Cheongwon, North Chungcheong Province, Roh said, “The problem of North Korean nuclear programs should be resolved peacefully.
“We should seek not only dialogue with the North, but also the cooperation of the U.S. and Japan in order to activate the multilateral framework of dialogue and cooperation involving China, Russia and the European Union,” Roh said.
The president stressed his commitment to see a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, saying, “It would be impossible to bring peace and prosperity to full blossom on a land frozen with confrontation and tension.”
The Roh administration has tried unsuccessfully to act as a broker for North Korea and the United States to seek a negotiated settlement. Washington has refused to reach a settlement, saying the communist state should first dismantle its programs of weapons of mass destruction, while Pyongyang has resorted to brinkmanship to bring the U.S. to the negotiating table.
Referring to a U.S. war on Iraq, Roh said it was one of many barriers standing in the way of Seoul's path to realize the age of Northeast Asia, but that this obstacle can be overcome if the nations rally together.
Source : www.korea.net
