North Korea urged to scrap nukes plan

THE US and South Korea, stung by North Korea’s admission that it has a secret nuclear weapons programme, are calling on Pyongyang to reverse course and abide by promises to renounce development of these armaments.

The startling disclosure, announced on Wednesday night by the White House, changed the political landscape in East Asia, setting back hopes that North Korea was on the road to becoming a more benign presence in the region.

Japan expressed “grave concern” about North Korea’s nuclear revelation.

The disclosure adds to the US administration’s list of foreign policy headaches, coming on top of a possible US attack on Iraq and the overall US war on terrorism.

Any administration inclination to try to confront North Korea, which President Bush has labelled as part of an “axis of evil” with Iraq and Iran, could be tempered by a desire not to become over-extended internationally.

Presidential spokesman Sean McCormack said North Korea was guilty of a serious infringement of a 1994 agreement with the US under which Pyongyang promised to be nuclear-free in return for economic assistance.

“The United States and our allies call on North Korea to comply with its commitments under the nonproliferation treaty and to eliminate its nuclear weapons programme in a verifiable manner,” Mr McCormack said.

US officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said North Korea told US diplomats that it was no longer bound by the anti-nuclear agreement.

In Seoul, South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Lee Tae-sik said South Korea has consistently pursued the de-nuclearisation of the Korean peninsula in line with international agreements. Japan and South Korea are treaty allies of the United States.

“We urge North Korea to abide by its obligations,” he said.

It is not clear what steps the Bush administration may have in mind now for North Korea. Also unclear is just how far along the North Korean nuclear programme is.

Both US and South Korean officials, however, have said that North Korea also maintains vigorous programmes to build large stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons. Last November, South Korea’s defence minister said that North Korea kept between 2,500 and 5,000 tons of biochemical weapons had germ warfare capability.

The new development is certain to have an impact in Japan, which may now feel vulnerable to potential nuclear blackmail by North Korea. There may also be increased challenges in Japan to the country’s postwar commitment to pacifism.