Statement by the Press Secretary/Director-General for Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on KEDO Executive Board

November 15, 2002

The joint communique announced at the summit meeting of Japan, the United States and the Republic of Korea held in October in Los Cabos affirmed the basic principle that they will aim for a peaceful solution of North Korea's nuclear weapons program under the close cooperation of the three countries. Following this affirmation, Japan welcomes the fact that the Executive Board of the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization.

(KEDO) was able to issue a clear message to North Korea on this issue through its Statement, as a result of the close consultations among Japan, the U.S. and the R.O.K. at the KEDO Executive Board meeting held on November 14 (local time).
The Statement urges North Korea to promptly eliminate its nuclear weapons program in a visible and verifiable manner. It also states that heavy fuel oil will be provided in November, but that deliveries will be suspended beginning with the December shipment. The Statement makes clear that future shipments will depend on North Korea's concrete and credible actions to dismantle completely its highly-enriched uranium program, and that the Executive Board strongly urges a positive response from the North Korean side.
The Government of Japan strongly hopes that the North Korean side will take this Statement seriously and promptly take concrete action to dismantle its nuclear weapons program immediately.
As expressed in the Statement, Japan intends to continue strongly urging the North Korean side to make a positive response concerning its nuclear weapons program, utilizing such channels as Japan-North Korea normalization talks and Japan-North Korea security talks in close cooperation with both the U.S. and the R.O.K.

(END)

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