Wed, May 27, 2009
BEIJING, May 26 (Xinhua) -- World countries including Kazakhstan, Bulgaria, Mongolia and Italy on Tuesday expressed deep concerns over and condemned the latest nuclear test by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
Kazakh Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement that Kazakhstan strongly condemns the DPRK's nuclear tests going on "in spite of warnings by the world community."
"This step will obviously affect the process of the global nonproliferation and pose a regional and international threat," according to the statement.
Kazakhstan called on the DPRK to return to the six-party talks and fully turn down its nuclear ambitions, the statement said.
Bulgaria's Foreign Ministry spokesman said DPRK's act was "an outright violation of the Resolution 1718 of the UN Security Council."
"We call upon the country to return to the table of the six-party talks immediately and unconditionally," the spokesman read a statement.
The Foreign Ministry of Mongolia also expressed deep regret over the DPRK's nuclear test, saying the move violated the UN Security Council Resolution 1718, ignoring the international community's advice and expectations.
Mongolia reaffirmed its support of nuclear nonproliferation and denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. The DPRK's nuclear issue should be solved through diplomatic ways, the ministry added.
On the same day, Italy's mainstream media gave wide coverage of the issue. The ANSA news agency quoted Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini as saying that the move was a "dangerous provocation" and a "threat to peace."
Frattini said he hoped the six-party talks could be resumed.
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said he was concerned that DPRK's display of nuclear capability will further heighten the tension in the Korean Peninsula and affect the whole East Asian region.
Najib expressed hope that the issue could be dealt with through the six-party talks as well as the UN Security Council.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged the DPRK to stop testing nuclear weapons as soon as possible, and to return to the six-party talks and restart a dialogue with South Korea.
The DPRK said Monday it has successfully conducted "one more" underground nuclear test.
In a statement released by the official news agency KCNA, the DPRK government said the test was "part of measures to bolster its nuclear deterrent for self-defense in every way as requested by its scientists and technicians."
The UN Security Council denounced Monday that the nuclear test as a "clear violation" of UN Resolution 1718 adopted in October 2006 after DPRK's first nuclear test and said it would seek a new resolution immediately.
The 1718 resolution forbids the DPRK from conducting any future nuclear tests or missile launches.
