NKorea threatens military action if targeted by UNSC
Rejecting the findings of a South Korean ship sinking investigation, a top North Korean diplomat said that his country should be allowed to send a probe-team to South Korea and also warned of initiating military action if the Security Council passed a resolution against it.
Rejecting the findings of a South Korean ship sinking investigation, a top North Korean diplomat said that his country should be allowed to send a probe-team to South Korea and also warned of initiating military action if the Security Council passed a resolution against it.
Results of an investigation by South Korea made public in May, revealed that its Cheonan naval ship was torpedoed by its neighbour North Korea.
On Monday, a South Korean delegation of civilian investigators and military personnel met with Security Council for the first time to discuss their findings involving the torpedoing of its ship.
Speaking one day after the presentation, Sin Son Ho, North Korea's envoy to the UN, described the findings of the "unilateral" investigation as "totally fabricated".
"The South Korean side has so far refused to accept our proposal but brought the case to the Security Council with its
unilateral fabricated investigations results," Sin told reporters.
"The investigation result is a complete fabrication from A to Z. And if the Security Council releases any documents against us condemning or questioning us in any document then myself as a diplomat, I can do nothing," he said.
"But the follow-up measures will be carried out by our military forces", Claude Heller, the current president of the
Security Council and Mexico's ambassador to the UN, noted that matter was under active consideration but nothing had been decided at this point.
"Security Council will go on with consultations looking for an agreement on the form and substance of statement, declaration, resolution that could be adopted eventually but we don't have any opinion for the time being," Heller told
reporters.
The investigation done by South Korea has been challenged by North Korea because it has largely been conducted internally but the majority of countries have accepted the findings.
Denying the ship sinking accusations, the government of Kim Jong-II has threatened "all out war" and has made a series
of aggressive statements against its neighbour and caused an escalation in tensions on the Korean peninsula.
"If the Security Council deceived by another tackles this case unfairly thus failing to prevent any conflict Korean peninsula the US and Security Council should bear the full responsibilities of the consequences," Sin said, noting the
former Secretary of State Colin Powell had given an erroneous presentation to the Security Council on Iraq.
The Obama administration has underlined its full support for measures that Seoul may want to pursue against Pyongyang.
It is widely expected that the US will introduce a sanctions resolution but China, which has veto power, remains non-committal to the proposal to punish its neighbour and ally.