Although it is not binding, 181 countries, including China and Russia, are in favor, with only North Korea opposing it.
Call for “full compliance with the obligation to abandon nuclear weapons and ban nuclear tests in accordance with the Security Council resolution”
“Under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, North Korea will never have the status of a nuclear weapons state.”
The Voice of America (VOA) reported on the 6th that the United Nations General Assembly adopted three resolutions at its plenary session on the 4th (local time) condemning North Korea’s nuclear tests and calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons.
Peter Mohan Pieris, Vice-Chairman of the United Nations General Assembly from Sri Lanka, who presided over the meeting on this day, announced that the resolution on the ‘Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty’ was adopted with 181 votes in favor, 1 against, and 4 abstentions.
North Korea resisted this resolution by voting against it, but many other countries voted in favor and the resolution was adopted. On this day, even North Korea’s friendly countries, China and Russia, voted in favor, and North Korea was the only country to vote against.
This resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly condemns North Korea’s nuclear test and emphasizes joint efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.
The resolution “condemns the past six nuclear tests conducted by North Korea in violation of relevant Security Council resolutions,” and “complies fully with its obligations under such Security Council resolutions, including that North Korea abandon its nuclear weapons program and not conduct additional nuclear tests.” “I urge you to do so,” he stated.
He added, “We reaffirm our support for the complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through peaceful means,” adding, “We welcome and encourage all efforts and dialogue toward this end, and urge all parties to continue diplomatic efforts.”
Another North Korea-related resolution adopted on this day has the theme of ‘steps to build a joint roadmap toward a world without nuclear weapons.’
The resolution, drafted by Japan, “commits to achieve the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement of all North Korea’s nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs and all other existing weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs, in accordance with relevant Security Council resolutions, and all It reaffirms the obligation of member states to fully implement all relevant Security Council resolutions.”
In addition, “We express serious concern about North Korea’s announcement on September 9 of last year to revise nuclear policy-related laws lowering restrictions on the use of nuclear weapons, and we urge North Korea to comply with the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and the safety measures of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as soon as possible.” We urge full compliance.”
The resolution also stated, “We confirm that North Korea cannot and will never have the status of a nuclear weapons state under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.”
148 countries supported this resolution, and 7 countries, including North Korea, China, Iran, and Russia, opposed it.
The resolution, aimed at ‘accelerating the implementation of nuclear disarmament commitments toward a world without nuclear weapons’, passed with 133 votes in favor, 26 against, and 25 abstentions.
Regarding North Korea, the resolution emphasized that “North Korea must fulfill its commitments to achieve the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful, complete, verifiable, and irreversible manner.”
He also said, “We urge North Korea to give up all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs, quickly return to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and comply with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards agreement, and we also demand diplomatic efforts to do so.” .
The First Committee of the United Nations General Assembly, which deals with disarmament and arms control issues, held topical discussions on nuclear weapons, weapons of mass destruction, and chemical weapons last October and submitted several resolutions to the plenary session.
At the time, Kim In-cheol, secretary of North Korea’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations, expressed his opposition to the resolution specifying North Korea’s obligation to abolish its nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction at the First Committee meeting of the United Nations General Assembly on October 30.
Secretary Kim said, “Our delegation voted against these draft resolutions because they seriously distort the essence of the Korean Peninsula issue.” “We are unable to escape the vicious cycle of deteriorating circumstances,” he said.
The resolution finally passed by the UN General Assembly is registered as an official document of the UN and has the effect of urging each country to implement various recommendations. However, unlike UN Security Council resolutions, which have enforceable force, they are not binding under international law.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.