(Eagle News) — The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has expressed “grave concern” over the escalation of tensions in the Korean Peninsula, including the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s two nuclear tests in 2016 and subsequent ballistic missile launches.
This despite a rare move from North Korea, which wrote to the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations appealing for backing in its row with Washington to prevent what it warned could be a “nuclear holocaust.”
In a statement, the ASEAN composed of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, “strongly urge(d)” the DPRK to “comply fully with its obligations arising from all relevant United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolutions and international laws in the interest of maintaining international peace and security.”
ASEAN said it was “mindful that instability in the Korean Peninsula seriously impacts the region and beyond.”
“ASEAN also urges the DPRK and all parties concerned to exercise self-restraint in order to de-escalate the tension and refrain from actions that may aggravate the situation,” the bloc added, noting that it supports the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
In connection with this, it called for the resumption of dialogue on the Korean Peninsula to “defuse tensions and create conditions conducive to peace and stability.”
“Reaching the brink of war”
In his letter to ASEAN, a copy of which was obtained by AFP on Thursday, North Korean foreign minister Ri Yong Ho warned the situation on the Korean Peninsula was “reaching the brink of war” because of Washington’s actions.
Ri urged the bloc’s chief to inform the group’s foreign ministers “about the grave situation” on the peninsula “and give them a proper proposal,” while criticizing at length United States-South Korean military exercises.
He said the exercises were justification enough for the North to develop atomic weapons, and warned that Pyongyang also had the capability to carry out a preemptive nuclear strike against its enemies.
North Korea is known to have close ties with some ASEAN members, including Cambodia and Laos.
Pyongyang’s relations with Malaysia were seriously damaged with the assassination in Kuala Lumpur in February of Kim Jong-Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.
South Korea has blamed Pyongyang for the killing, accusing its agents of using a banned nerve agent.
Tensions soaring
Tensions have soared in the region in recent weeks in the wake of a series of North Korean missile tests and tough rhetoric from the administration of US President Donald Trump on the isolated nation’s rogue weapons program.
Washington has deployed an aircraft carrier strike group to the Korean peninsula amid signs the North could be preparing for a sixth nuclear test, and US officials have said all options are on the table.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will chair a UN Security Council meeting on Friday to push for a tougher response to North Korea and pile pressure on China to rein in its ally.(With a report from Jerold Tagbo, Eagle News Service; and Agence France Presse)
