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The ASEAN Regional Forum on July 28 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia will adopt a chairman¡¯s statement criticizing North Korea¡¯s recent missile tests, officials said Monday. The move follows a UN Security Council resolution on Saturday and Group of Eight (G8) Summit statement on Monday both condemning Pyongyang¡¯s firing of missiles.
ARF nations are angry that the missile tests came without prior notice, a government official said, adding there was a high chance the forum would adopt a statement similar to the Security Council resolution. Malaysia, the current chair, will spearhead the move, the official added.
An ARF chairman¡¯s statement in 2002 expressed concern over the naval clash between two Koreas in the West Sea that year, and one in 2005 called for a peaceful resolution to North Korea¡¯s nuclear program in six-party talks.
The regional forum comprises 22 members including ASEAN and participants in the six-party talks. North Korea was admitted in 2000, and its Foreign Minister Paek Nam-sun will attend this month¡¯s forum.
After the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution denouncing the missile test, G8 member states -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the U.S. -- agreed, and called on Pyongyang to return to the six-nation talks. On the same day, U.S. President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin met and agreed to work toward restarting the talks.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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