RI hopes for good response to UN resolution

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Mon, 10/16/2006 10:24 AM | World

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesia is urging North Korea to ""respond wisely"" to a UN Security Council resolution, joining a chorus of world voices hailing the harsh measure as a clear message to the communist country.

""North Korea should respond wisely to a UNSC resolution and address the strong and deep concerns of the international community, especially countries in the region, over its nuclear test, which has had a destabilizing impact on the region,"" Indonesian presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal told The Jakarta Post.

Indonesia, he said, urged North Korea to exercise self-restraint and return in good faith to six-party talks.

North Korea has boycotted the talks with the South, the United States, China, Japan and Russia since last year, when the U.S. began cracking down on firms it suspected of aiding Pyongyang in illicit activities such as counterfeiting.

A member of House of Representatives Commission I on security and international relations, Marzuki Darusman, also urged North Korea and other countries to resume the six-party talks.

""It looks like the major powers have finally agreed on a resolution after intense debate. We hope North Korea can see that the world is quite united against them,"" he told the Post.

According to Agence France-Presse, world leaders hailed the UN sanctions although the consensus was fragile and China said it still had objections.

U.S. President George W. Bush said the unanimous Security Council resolution sent ""a clear message"" to reclusive leader Kim Jong-il, a statement echoed in London, Paris, Tokyo and Seoul.

""This action by the United Nations, which was swift and tough, says that we are united in our determination to see to it that the Korean peninsula is nuclear weapons-free,"" the U.S. president was quoted as saying by AFP.

But signs of the intense diplomatic haggling over the scale and nature of the sanctions were evident even after the text was approved in New York, with China -- Pyongyang's closest ally -- voicing ""reservations"" about provisions for inspecting cargo going in and out of North Korea.

In contrast, Japan, which had pushed for even tougher measures, said it was considering further action of its own to ratchet up the pressure on Pyongyang. Japan slapped a sweeping ban on imports from North Korea before the UN vote.

North Korea's UN ambassador, Pak Gil Yon, condemned the resolution and said the Security Council had ignored the nuclear threat posed by Washington.

""It is gangster-like for the Security Council to have adopted today a coercive resolution while neglecting the nuclear threat and moves for sanctions and pressure of the United States,"" he said before storming out.

The UN text demands the elimination of all North Korean programs related to weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles, as well as a ban targeting missiles, tanks, large artillery systems, warships and combat aircraft. It also provides for the inspection of cargo to and from the country.

It allows a travel ban on officials working on such programs and the freezing of funds and economic assets linked to them, as well as an embargo on luxury goods.

But it specifically does not include any reference to possible military action, and the United States also dropped its earlier proposal for a blanket arms embargo in response to objections by China and Russia.

China's UN ambassador, Wang Guangya, voiced ""reservations"" about the provisions for cargo inspections.

""China strongly urges the countries concerned to adopt a prudent and responsible attitude in this regard and refrain from taking any provocative steps that may intensify the tension,"" Wang was quoted as saying by AFP.

South Korea urged the North to recognize the international community's ""firm stance,"" abandon its weapons program and return to the talks.

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