Lawmakers from Japan and South Korea share views on the denuclearization of Northeast Asia
Mar. 2, 2010
by Kohei Okata, Staff Writer
Parliamentarians from Japan and South Korea shared views on the denuclearization of Northeast Asia, concerning the three nations of Japan, South Korea, and North Korea, at a symposium in Tokyo on February 27. Many voices were heard, which underscored that the issue is an urgent one to be discussed in parallel with the North Korean nuclear issue.
The symposium was organized by the Japanese and South Korean branches of the Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament (PNND), an international body of lawmakers, with about 100 people in attendance. Four parliamentarians from each of the two nations discussed the issue.
As a premise for advancing denuclearization, the usual sentiment is that the North Korean nuclear issue must first be resolved. But Kwon Young-ghil, a member of the Democratic Labor Party, an opposition party in South Korea, countered this contention, stressing, "It isn't a matter of making an order. Both issues must be advanced."
Hideo Hiraoka of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) from Yamaguchi's second constituency, added, "Let us encourage North Korea to disable its nuclear facilities by strongly proclaiming the denuclearization of the region."
The DPJ Parliamentarians for Disarmament Promotion has conceived a "North East Asia Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone treaty." The treaty draft incorporates the negative security assurance which guarantees that the United States, China, and Russia will never attack the three treaty nations with nuclear weapons. Lee Mi-Kyung, director general of the Democratic Party of South Korea, stated, "Pledges by the nuclear superpowers could lead North Korea down the path of renouncing its nuclear weapons."
(Originally published on February 28, 2010)
Parliamentarians from Japan and South Korea shared views on the denuclearization of Northeast Asia, concerning the three nations of Japan, South Korea, and North Korea, at a symposium in Tokyo on February 27. Many voices were heard, which underscored that the issue is an urgent one to be discussed in parallel with the North Korean nuclear issue.
The symposium was organized by the Japanese and South Korean branches of the Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament (PNND), an international body of lawmakers, with about 100 people in attendance. Four parliamentarians from each of the two nations discussed the issue.
As a premise for advancing denuclearization, the usual sentiment is that the North Korean nuclear issue must first be resolved. But Kwon Young-ghil, a member of the Democratic Labor Party, an opposition party in South Korea, countered this contention, stressing, "It isn't a matter of making an order. Both issues must be advanced."
Hideo Hiraoka of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) from Yamaguchi's second constituency, added, "Let us encourage North Korea to disable its nuclear facilities by strongly proclaiming the denuclearization of the region."
The DPJ Parliamentarians for Disarmament Promotion has conceived a "North East Asia Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone treaty." The treaty draft incorporates the negative security assurance which guarantees that the United States, China, and Russia will never attack the three treaty nations with nuclear weapons. Lee Mi-Kyung, director general of the Democratic Party of South Korea, stated, "Pledges by the nuclear superpowers could lead North Korea down the path of renouncing its nuclear weapons."
(Originally published on February 28, 2010)
