Allow me first, on behalf
of my delegation, to congratulate Ms. Haya Rashed
Al-Khalifa on her election as President and to express
my conviction that the session will be successful under
her able leadership.
The desire of humankind for a peaceful and
prosperous world in the new century is still faced with
grave challenges. The unilateralism and high-handed
acts of the super-Power are becoming so reckless as to
trample on the principles of respect for the sovereign
equality of all States, the fundamental basis of the
United Nations Charter, thereby arousing international
society’s serious concern. Worse still are the invasions
of sovereign States, either openly committed or
disregarded, and even fanned under the pretext of non-
proliferation and anti-terrorism, giving rise to the
massacre of innocent people and the destruction of
international peace and security.
The threats and high-handed acts of the super-
Power are becoming more and more obvious, with the
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as their target.
The United States adventurous military manoeuvres,
such as military exercises and an economic blockade of
the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, continue
to be tolerated, while the routine missile test-firings of
our army for self-defence have been condemned as a
threat to international peace and security. Such a reality
is a serious lesson to us all that a country with
powerful strength, a just deterrent, is capable of
safeguarding the dignity and sovereignty of a nation by
itself.
Herein lies the necessity and justness of the
Songun policy of General Kim Jong Il, the respected
leader of our people. The Songun policy is a sure
guarantee of the ability of the Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea to safeguard its sovereignty and
security and ensure peace and stability on the Korean
peninsula, and in the region as a whole, in the face of
the ever-hardening, hostile policy of the United States
towards it. The Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea’s possession of deterrent power, solely for self-
defence, is also fully in line with the interest of the
countries of the region in peace and security and a
peaceful environment.
As is well known, the Korean people have
suffered a tragic history; after the nearly half-century-
long tyrannical military occupation by Japan they have
been living in a state of war with the United States for
60 years. Against this background, the Korean people
aspire for peace more than any other country. Today
there persist on the Korean peninsula touch-and-go
critical tension and confrontation, rather than durable
peace and security. The source is none other than the
vicious, hostile policy of the United States towards the
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
The nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula is not
exceptional either, as it originates from United States
nuclear threats. The United States policy towards the
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has gone
beyond mere hostility, going so far as to pose nuclear
threats, even by designating it part of an “axis of evil”
and the target of pre-emptive strikes, thus driving the
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to inevitably
possess a nuclear deterrent. The Government of the
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea maintains its
consistent position of seeking to resolve the issue of
denuclearizing the Korean peninsula peacefully
through dialogue and negotiation.
As the world knows well, the core elements
stipulated in the Joint Statement of 19 September 2005,
adopted at the six-party talks, are the respective
commitments of the Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea and the United States to abandon its nuclear
programme and to live in peaceful coexistence. As for
the Joint Statement, the Democratic People’s Republic
of Korea remains committed to implementing all its
agreed provisions on an equal footing. The Democratic
People’s Republic of Korea is sure to get greater
benefit from implementation of the agreed provisions
of the talks. That is why it is willing, more than any
other country, to hold the talks. However, the United
States, soon after the announcement of that Joint
Statement, wasted no time in imposing financial
sanctions upon the Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea, a dialogue partner, eventually scrapping the
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already agreed itinerary for the following rounds of the
Talks and creating the present impasse.
In view of these facts, it is crystal clear that the
United States is not in favour of the six-party talks and
the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. If there
is anything that the United States does favour, it is
aggravated tension on the Korean peninsula, to be used
as a pretext to reinforce its military forces in the north-
east Asian region. By doing so, the United States aims
to strengthen its armed forces in the region and thus
contain the ever-growing, strong Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea and neighbouring countries within
its world supremacy strategy. That is the real intention
of the United States.
It is quite preposterous that the Democratic
People’s Republic of Korea, under the groundless
United States sanctions, takes part in the Talks to
discuss its own nuclear abandonment. That is the
matter of principle on which even the slightest
concession cannot be tolerated. I take this opportunity
to express my deep gratitude to Member States of the
United Nations for their continued support for and
encouragement of the Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea in its efforts to achieve a peaceful resolution of
the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula.
As for Korea’s reunification, it is the supreme
aspiration of our nation to realize it at the earliest
possible date as a prerequisite to ensuring lasting peace
and security on the Korean peninsula. The North-South
Joint Declaration of 15 June 2000 is a declaration on
realizing independence and peaceful reunification by
the Korean nation itself, rejecting foreign interference.
Regrettably, however, on 21 September the South
Korean Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade made
distorted remarks about the root causes of the tension
in the Korean peninsula, without saying a single word
about implementation of the North-South Joint
Declaration of 15 June 2000. That causes us
consternation.
It is already well known that the major factors
undermining peace and stability and aggravating
tension in the Korean peninsula are the United States
military presence in South Korea; its doctrine of pre-
emptive nuclear strike against the Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea; incessant large-scale joint United
States and South Korea military exercises; the mass
delivery to South Korea of all sorts of military
equipment, including weapons of mass destruction; and
aerial reconnaissance carried out by the United States a
hundred-odd times every month.
The North-South Joint Declaration of 15 June has
not been smoothly implemented so far, because of the
persistent manoeuvres of the United States, which
dislikes improved inter-Korean relations, and because
of the existence in South Korea of such legal
mechanisms as the national security law stipulating
fellow countrymen as enemies and denying even basic
human rights, which is against the ideals of “By our
nation itself”, the core of the Joint Declaration. Those
are undeniable facts.
By upholding the banner of the North-South Joint
Declaration, and under the ideals of “By our nation
itself”, the Government of our Republic will surely
achieve national reunification by firmly realizing
cooperation in the three areas of national
independence, peace against war, and patriotism for
reunification.
For the United Nations to fulfil its mission for the
maintenance of international peace and security,
practical measures should be taken to reject
unilateralism and high-handed acts that block the
establishment of equitable and just international
relations. Furthermore, the United Nations should be
democratized so that all international issues are
resolved in conformity with the common interests of
Member States.
In this regard, we are of the view that one of the
reasonable ways to effect that is to hand over from the
Security Council to the General Assembly the power to
pass resolutions on issues directly linked to
international peace and security, such as the use of
force. It is also imperative to ensure that the Security
Council, responsible for international peace and
security, strictly observe the principle of fairness in its
activities. It should be accountable to the General
Assembly by making a real contribution to
international peace and security, not a means for
certain countries to legalize their strategic interests.
The fact that the Security Council remains
indifferent to the infringement of sovereignty and the
massacre of civilians in Arab territories — such as the
United States invasion of Iraq and Israel’s aggression
in Lebanon — is a typical example of the
irresponsibility, unfairness and double standards in its
activities. The reform of the Security Council now
under consideration should focus on ensuring fairness
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in its activities, first and foremost, and ensure that the
non-aligned and developing countries, which make up
the overwhelming majority of Member States, are fully
represented.
With regard to expansion of the permanent
membership of the Council, a country like Japan, the
war criminal which invaded Asian countries and
massacred innocent people, but which has been
distorting its aggressive history instead of liquidating
it, should never be allowed to become a permanent
member.
The Government of the Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea will continue to develop relations of
friendship and cooperation with all Member States that
respect its sovereignty, in accordance with the ideals of
its foreign policy — independence, peace and
friendship — and will make an active contribution to
the efforts of international society to achieve world
peace and security and sustainable development.