Posted on 02/09/2005 11:15:30 PM PST by sonsofliberty2000
Edited on 02/09/2005 11:33:13 PM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
SEOUL, South Korea - North Korea (news - web sites) publicly admitted Thursday for the first time that it has nuclear weapons, and said it wouldn't return to six-nation talks aimed at getting it to abandon its nuclear ambitions.
Diplomats have said that North Korea has acknowledged having nuclear arms in private talks, but this is the first time the communist government has said so directly to the public.
"We had already taken the resolute action of pulling out of the (Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty) and have manufactured nukes for self-defense to cope with the Bush administration's ever-more undisguised policy to isolate and stifle the DPRK," the North Korean Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency.
DPRK refers to the country's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
North Korea's "nuclear weapons will remain (a) nuclear deterrent for self-defense under any circumstances," the ministry said. "The present reality proves that only powerful strength can protect justice and truth."
Since 2003, the United States, the two Koreas, China, Japan and Russia have held three rounds of talks in Beijing aimed at persuading the North to abandon nuclear weapons development in return for economic and diplomatic rewards. But no significant progress has been made.
A fourth round scheduled for September was canceled when North Korea refused to attend, citing what it called a "hostile" U.S. policy.
Thursday's statement came after President Bush (news - web sites) started his second term last month by refraining from direct criticism of North Korea — raising hopes that the North would return to the stalled nuclear talks. But North Korea said it had little hope for improved ties during Bush's second term office.
"We have wanted the six-party talks but we are compelled to suspend our participation in the talks for an indefinite period till we have recognized that there is justification for us to attend the talks," the North said Thursday.
North Korea said it came to its decision because "the U.S. disclosed its attempt to topple the political system in the DPRK at any cost, threatening it with a nuclear stick."
Still, North Korea said it retained its "principled stand to solve the issue through dialogue and negotiations and its ultimate goal to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula remain unchanged."
Here is a recent example -
January 24, 2005 - North Korea says it possesses nuke weapons
When I saw the title of this discussion, I immediately thought of Madeline Albright. I blame her more than anyone for this foreign policy catastrophy that gave NK the bomb. Thank you for posting the picture of her smiling and toasting Kim Jong Il.
He sort of looks like something out of Austin Powers doesn't he?
I will use my nuke if you do not give me....ONE MILLION dollars!
...vaporize the middle of North Korea and don't look back.
While I consider N. Korea to be backwards and ignorant, I still understand and believe them to be a danger to world peace (whirled peas for the lefties who may be on board) because they are too ignorant as a result of their long term isolation from the rest of the world to understand what having a nuclear weapon really means. And sadly that goes double for their unfortunate population.
They need to be pinched.
Nuclear Blackmailers Shall Be Nuked BTTT
does that mean he has to give back his Nobel Peace prize back.
Because it seems he got it under far more questionable circumstances than any Florida election....
Mini Me, he's so very ronery...
CLINTON'S LEGACY
"Quick, Ros....hide that thing. They may be wanting it back now. I'll be d@mned if I let them take my only award away from me...no matter how false it is. I am way too old to go back out hammering nails..."
Team America, **** Yeah!
How could the Bush administration isolate NK more than it already is?
IslamoSoviet Peanuturd BTTT
Yeah, but the wording of this one is far less vague and ambigious. The use of the words "manufactured" an "deterrent" are telling.
Why is a nice country like North Korea hanging around with all those mean old nukes?
I bet they started out with mortar shells, or maybe just one sniff of missile...just one...and before you know it, they're messing around with centrifuges.
I heard they even stole their sister's piggybank to buy more gear.
Wasn't it at least 15 years ago that the US demonstrated that it could use space-based lasers (or other particle beams?) to detonate nuclear warhead missles as they are being launched?
Yup, a bad joke, just like Arafat's peace prize.
"DPRK refers to the country's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea"
That's another bad joke.
Didn't they already admit to that in of the million treats they made against us??
Carter is directly responsible for this fiasco.
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