UN resolution on DPRK

United Nations Security Council Resolution 2087, approved on Tuesday, shows the international community continues to take a consistent stance on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's satellite launches. The DPRK needs to comply with all relevant resolutions approved by the council and refrain from using ballistic missile technology for its launches.

Comprehensive treatment of the tensions over the Korean Peninsula is needed that addresses both the symptoms and root causes.

Every state, including the DPRK, is entitled to the peaceful use of space, but Pyongyang's right has been restrained by UNSC resolutions adopted in 2006 and 2009.

Hours after the UNSC adopted the latest resolution, the DPRK responded that it would "strengthen its military capabilities for self-defense, including nuclear deterrence".

At such a sensitive time it would be unwise of Pyongyang to insist on pressing ahead with its satellite program. After all, a new round of tensions is the least desirable scenario and serves no party's interests.

As a close neighbor of the DPRK, China remains committed to building lasting peace and stability in the peninsula. The country has participated in a very constructive manner in the UNSC consultations. Some elements and measures in the original draft of Tuesday's resolution, which in China's view would jeopardize normal trade between the DPRK and other countries and would harm the livelihoods of the DPRK people, no longer exist in the adopted resolution.

It would be a misinterpretation if the UNSC's expression of opposition to Pyongyang's improper action is taken as a signal of further estrangement or even isolation of the DPRK. Hence, it is important to draw attention to the positive information the UNSC resolution delivers.

The parties concerned should shore up engagement, consultation and contacts so as to dissolve enmity and suspicion step by step and pave the way for an early resumption of the Six-Party Talks, which remains the most viable platform for dialogue and was urged by Party leader Xi Jinping on Wednesday.

Xi's calls for the parties concerned to address each other's concerns through dialogue and consultations during his meeting in Beijing with Kim Moo-sung, the special envoy of Republic of Korea president-elect Park Geun-hye, represent the pragmatic approach to peace.

It is good to see diplomacy among the parties concerned is continuing. It is also encouraging that Xi stressed China's support for the final independent and peaceful reunification of the peninsula.

(China Daily 01/24/2013 page8)