under ground nuclear test in North Korea
9 October 2006
Pretoria - The South African Government is deeply concerned at the reported
nuclear test by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), as announced
on 9 October 2006.
The South African Government is fully convinced that nuclear weapons
threaten the total annihilation of humanity and are therefore not a source of
security and do not serve any deterrent purpose whatsoever.
Accordingly, the South African government calls upon the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea to fully and verifiably terminate any nuclear weapons
programme, to return to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
(NPT), sign and ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), and to
open all its nuclear facilities and materials to comprehensive International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards, inspections and surveillance.
The South African Government encourages all parties to urgently seek to
intensify efforts that would facilitate the early resumption of the Six-Party
Talks, and the full implementation of the 19 September 2005 Joint Statement,
which would contribute to an early resolution of this nuclear issue in a
peaceful manner through multi-party dialogue.
Enquiries:
Ronnie Mamoepa
Cell: 082 990 4853
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
9 October 2006
