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."
I guess it's time for another "work accident" or 10 in North Korea.
Did you say North Korean missiles can reach Beijing????Well,NK has it's missiles,nuke programme & it's "independence" because Beijing wills it.NK & Pakistan have got help from the PRC so that it's regional rivals like Japan,the US & India remain tied down.The moment the PRC moves away from NK,our peerless leader will be consigned to the history books & China will lose it's most trusted insurance policy.
Sunday, Sept. 12, 2004 10:13 p.m. EDT Albright: North Korea 'Cheated' on Clinton Nuke Agreement
Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright admitted for the first time on Sunday that under the Clinton administration's Agreed Framework arms control treaty with Kim Jong-il, North Korea "cheated."
Asked point-blank if North Korea developed nuclear weapons during the Clinton administration, Albright told NBC's "Meet the Press," "No, what they were doing, as it turns out, they were cheating." "
The worst part that has happened under the Agreed Framework," Albright said, was that "there [were] these fuel rods, and the nuclear program was frozen." But because of North Korea's cheating, she explained, "those fuel rods have now been reprocessed, as far as we know, and North Korea has a capability, which at one time might have been two potential nuclear weapons, up to six to eight now, we're not really clear."
Albright's comments came less than 24 hours after reports surfaced that Pyongyang detonated what some said was its first above-ground nuclear test – though experts later said the mushroom-cloud explosion witnessed by tens of thousands was a non-nuclear event.
In a February 2003 interview, Albright boasted to NBC, "When we had the Agreed Framework, we did freeze those fuel rods, and had we not, in the last years, we would have somewhere, people calculate, 50 to 100 nuclear weapons."
A 1999 congressional study determined that Pyongyang was cheating on the agreement, but Albright disregarded the warning and continued to claim that the Agreed Framework was a success.
I don't know NK how take nuclear weapon ? And Pakistan how take nuclear weapon ? And Libya and Iran said their take nuclear from Pakistan . Then must have country help Pakistan and NK .
Kim Jong, IL - Is that near Chicago?
North Korea has nukes. Does anybody want to start thinking about a missile defense system again? Oh, sorry, President Bush is already doing that.
Seriously, Bejing should be told that an attack on us or any of our allies with nuclear weapons (or technology) from North Korea would be considered a nuclear attack on the United States by the People's Republic of China. They've got nukes? So do we (lots of them).
damn that sucks. i love japan. i love going to japan. i don't like being so close to a nutjob with nukes though when i'm over there.
John Edwards warned us about this...
but but but... Jimmy Carter said they didn't, and was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for his work in N Korea....
The real axis of evil is Russia & China. Iran, Syria, N. Korea, formally Iraq & etc. are their surrogates. Perhaps to take pressure off of Iran, China & Russia had N. Korea make some noise. Also, maybe the announcement of the US sending over 800,000 troops (We can do it) to S. Korea if the North invades was anticipation of this announcement. The one thing we got going for the United States, is the Axis of Evil knows President Bush means business. President Bush withstood the full force of the enemies within our country and used the military to take a key member of their axis out. I still believed that 9/11 was supported by Russia & China as a decapitation attack in preparation of a nuclear first strike.
This guy (lil' Tinpot Kimmy) has got to go.
I think China's gonna take care of him very soon. Commies or not, they don't like the idea of a lunatic dictator with nukes any more than we do.
He might well be bluffing. Methinks that if he had a 100% functional bomb, he'd already have used it-or at least tested it.
See! Carter and Clinton did have foreign policy accomplishments! They managed to help arm North Korea. They should be proud their communist friends achieved their goal.
I agree on each count.
It is amazing to me, that a man as dumb as Carter, as internationally inept as he has proven to be, that he would have his own international policy center. I know he just opened it himself and set up shop. I just can't believe anyone would join him in that effort.
As for the democrats, they really have essentially become a group that sublets itself to whichever group oposes the United States at any given time.
"I am not ronery. Pay attention to me dammit!"
And why is that?
Looks as though that NODONG has an STD. :~)
Well, this is certainly a suprise! :-)
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