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RUMSFELD: U.S. Plans to Consult Allies on North Korean Nuke Violations
Thursday, October 17, 2002
By Kathleen T. Rhem
American Forces Press Service

U.N. weapons inspectors in North Korea are not a likely option at this point:



"The idea of inspections is when a country says, 'We've decided that we want to conform to international standards and agree to international resolutions and requirements and agreements. We're going to cooperate, and we'd like to prove we're not doing any of these things. Therefore, we'd like inspectors to come in and validate that truth for the entire world.'"



WASHINGTON -- AFIS
United States government officials will consult with friends and allies on what to do about North Korea's admission that it has been developing nuclear weapons, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said today.

North Korean officials reportedly admitted to an American diplomat that they have an active nuclear weapons program in defiance of the so- called Agreed Framework. In this agreement, North Korea promised in 1994 that it would freeze its nuclear program.

"It is a reality that they stand in direct breach of four separate agreements, by their own admission," Rumsfeld said in a Pentagon press briefing. The other three agreements North Korea has violated are the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, the International Atomic Energy Agency Safeguards Agreement, and the North-South Denuclearization Agreement.
(More: DoD News Source)
2002 © The United States Department of Defense.

Dan