YouSaid · the spoken record

Choe Su Hon,

lines on the record: 132
first: 1997-09-24
most recent: 2007-09-24
sittings or episodes: 7
sources: un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“The peaceful and prosperous new world desired by humankind must have as its basis fair international relations in which the sovereignty of all States Members of the United Nations is respected without differentiation and the principles of equality and mutual benefit are observed. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will continue to strive for the creation of a just and equal world order based on the ideals of independence, peace and friendship.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Unilateralism and high-handedness should never be tolerated, as they violate principles of international law and the Charter, as well as collective efforts to build a new and just world order, based on respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity, equality and mutual benefit. Disputes should be resolved peacefully through dialogue and negotiations. Collective sanctions and the use of force in the form of armed aggression against sovereign States must never be tolerated on any account. The Security Council should be a responsible organ that truly ensures international peace and security. It should not be used by certain countries to promote their own strategic interests.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Principles of respect for national sovereignty and equality the foundation of modern international relations are threatened by attempts to extend and expand the “war against terrorism” for self-serving reasons, and by the high- handedness and arbitrariness of forces that advocate pre-emptive nuclear strikes and accelerated the modernization of nuclear weapons. The present international situation requires the United Nations to strengthen its central role and functions in resolving such issues as global peace and security and sustainable economic and social development, in conformity with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Indeed, Japan's attempt to eliminate by force the Chongryon, the legitimate overseas organization of compatriots from my country, constitutes an infringement of the sovereignty of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea as serious as any financial sanction could be and a massive human rights violation according to the provisions of existing international human rights instruments. We therefore hope that Japan will truly follow the path of friendship and peace rather than revive its unsavoury past. Unless it makes a clean break with its past crimes, Japan is not entitled to a future. Although the first decade of the new millennium is already nearing its end, our planet has yet to be peaceful, even for a day. Indeed, world peace and security are now confronted with serious challenges of ever-increasing intensity.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“In addition, Japan’s discriminatory and repressive acts deny the national rights of Koreans in Japan, in violation of international law. Japan's recent manoeuvres against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon), have driven relations between Japan and our country to the lowest possible level. In an open challenge to the international community’s denunciation and condemnation of Japan’s treatment of Koreans, Japanese authorities have not hesitated to distort history, even going so far as to try to conceal Japan’s bloody past crimes, while turning the “self- defence force” into a regular army with a mandate that permits pre-emptive strikes against other countries by changing the “Peace Constitution” into a war constitution.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“In order for the objectives of the North-South Joint Declaration to be achieved and for peace and reunification to return to the Korean peninsula, the United States policy of hostility towards our country, and its interference in our nation’s internal affairs, should be brought to an end. In any case, the Government of our Republic will make every effort to bring about national reunification as soon as possible by emphasizing the concept of one nation, defending peace, realizing unity under the ideal of “by our nation itself”, and upholding the banner of the North-South Joint Declaration. I would also like to draw the Assembly's attention to Japan’s recent attempt to use militarization to cast a dark shadow across the future development of the Korean peninsula and its neighbours.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The historic North-South Joint Declaration of 15 June 2000, a declaration of national independence and peaceful reunification, sought to achieve reunification through concerted efforts in accordance with the ideal of “by our nation itself”, thereby rejecting interference from outside forces. The north-south summit now under way in Pyongyang opens a significant new phase that augurs well for peace, joint prosperity and reunification, taking Korean relations to a higher level, in accordance with the historic Joint Declaration and the spirit of “our nation itself”. With the north and the south sitting face to face in a spirit of national independence and love for country, all problems can surely be resolved in the interests of our nation, regardless of differences in ideas and systems.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The United States should take steps to change its policy towards my country and to normalize bilateral relations, while Japan should make a clean break with its past policy of aggression and crimes and set aside its hostility towards my country, as it has pledged to do. We will watch closely every move on the part of the United States and Japan at this stage, the stage that requires actions. Nothing is more urgent or important than the reunification of the nation, which has had to live with a territorial division imposed by outside forces for more than half a century. Ever since the early days of the division, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has consistently sought to reunify the nation through independent dialogue and negotiations between the north and south of Korea, as it sees reunification as the supreme national task.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The Nyongbyon nuclear facilities are the parent body of our independent nuclear power industry, built with tremendous human and material resources. Accordingly, it is a courageous political decision to halt their operation and now pass to the stage of disabling them prior to eventual dismantlement. As we clarified again at the Six-party Talks recently held in Beijing, the successful implementation of the 19 September Joint Statement requires all parties to fulfil their respective obligations in accordance with the principle of “actions for actions”. Specifically, it depends on what practical measures the United States and Japan will take to end their hostile policies towards the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The Joint Statement sets out the obligations of all parties in the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula on the basis of the principle of words for words and actions for actions. Denuclearization of the Korean peninsula will not lead to our unilateral disarmament, but can be achieved by ending the hostile relations between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the United States and by eliminating all nuclear threats on the Korean peninsula and in the surrounding region. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea suspended the operation of the Nyongbyon nuclear facilities and allowed monitoring by the International Atomic Energy Agency, thus fulfilling its obligations under the 13 February agreement in a sincere manner.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Our national military power has a self-defensive nature, since it is intended solely to safeguard our sovereignty and to fulfil the aspirations of the countries in the region for peace, security and stability. Denuclearization of the Korean peninsula was the lifelong teaching of our fatherly leader President Kim Il Sung, and it has been our consistent position that the nuclear issue must be resolved peacefully through dialogue and negotiation. Thanks to our sincere efforts, several rounds of the Six-Party Talks have been held to date. That made possible the adoption of Joint Statement of 19 September 2005, followed by the 13 February 2007 agreement on initial actions to denuclearize the Korean peninsula.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“There has been no other option for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea whose territory and population are small but to strengthen its military power for self- defence, on the basis of Songun politics, to protect its national sovereignty and dignity in the face of the United States’ threats of nuclear strikes and harsh economic sanctions. It is the Songun politics of the respected General Kim Jong Il and our active efforts that guarantee peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and a strategic balance in the North-East Asian region. Our Songun politics is a source of great pride and self-confidence for us, because it deters military conflict and ensures peace on the Korean peninsula and in North-East Asia.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Peace and stability on the Korean peninsula is directly linked to the peace and security of the North- East Asian region and of the world as a whole. It is regrettable, however, that there has never been lasting peace and stability on the Korean peninsula. Rather, there has been a recurring cycle of tension and détente whose principal cause is nothing other than the current, hostile relations between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the United States. As history has proved, no issue can be resolved by resorting to sanctions and pressure.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“On behalf of the delegation of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, I should like at the outset to congratulate you, Sir, on your election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its sixty-second session. I am confident that your able leadership will ensure the success of our work. I wish to begin my statement by reiterating the principled and just position of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and to emphasize its sincere effort to resolve the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula, which continues to draw the attention of the international community. That issue, as has been made clear time and again from this very rostrum, is no more than a product of the deep-rooted and hostile policy of the United States towards the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea a policy that has lasted for more than half a century.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will continue to develop relations of friendship and cooperation with all Member States that respect its sovereignty, in accordance with the ideals of its foreign policy — independence, peace and friendship — and will make an active contribution to the efforts of international society to achieve world peace and security and sustainable development.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“The reform of the Security Council now under consideration should focus on ensuring fairness 06-53609 28 in its activities, first and foremost, and ensure that the non-aligned and developing countries, which make up the overwhelming majority of Member States, are fully represented. With regard to expansion of the permanent membership of the Council, a country like Japan, the war criminal which invaded Asian countries and massacred innocent people, but which has been distorting its aggressive history instead of liquidating it, should never be allowed to become a permanent member.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“It is also imperative to ensure that the Security Council, responsible for international peace and security, strictly observe the principle of fairness in its activities. It should be accountable to the General Assembly by making a real contribution to international peace and security, not a means for certain countries to legalize their strategic interests. The fact that the Security Council remains indifferent to the infringement of sovereignty and the massacre of civilians in Arab territories — such as the United States invasion of Iraq and Israel’s aggression in Lebanon — is a typical example of the irresponsibility, unfairness and double standards in its activities.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“For the United Nations to fulfil its mission for the maintenance of international peace and security, practical measures should be taken to reject unilateralism and high-handed acts that block the establishment of equitable and just international relations. Furthermore, the United Nations should be democratized so that all international issues are resolved in conformity with the common interests of Member States. In this regard, we are of the view that one of the reasonable ways to effect that is to hand over from the Security Council to the General Assembly the power to pass resolutions on issues directly linked to international peace and security, such as the use of force.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“The North-South Joint Declaration of 15 June has not been smoothly implemented so far, because of the persistent manoeuvres of the United States, which dislikes improved inter-Korean relations, and because of the existence in South Korea of such legal mechanisms as the national security law stipulating fellow countrymen as enemies and denying even basic human rights, which is against the ideals of “By our nation itself”, the core of the Joint Declaration. Those are undeniable facts. By upholding the banner of the North-South Joint Declaration, and under the ideals of “By our nation itself”, the Government of our Republic will surely achieve national reunification by firmly realizing cooperation in the three areas of national independence, peace against war, and patriotism for reunification.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“It is already well known that the major factors undermining peace and stability and aggravating tension in the Korean peninsula are the United States military presence in South Korea; its doctrine of pre- emptive nuclear strike against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea; incessant large-scale joint United States and South Korea military exercises; the mass delivery to South Korea of all sorts of military equipment, including weapons of mass destruction; and aerial reconnaissance carried out by the United States a hundred-odd times every month.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Regrettably, however, on 21 September the South Korean Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade made distorted remarks about the root causes of the tension in the Korean peninsula, without saying a single word about implementation of the North-South Joint Declaration of 15 June 2000. That causes us consternation.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“I take this opportunity to express my deep gratitude to Member States of the United Nations for their continued support for and encouragement of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in its efforts to achieve a peaceful resolution of the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula. As for Korea’s reunification, it is the supreme aspiration of our nation to realize it at the earliest possible date as a prerequisite to ensuring lasting peace and security on the Korean peninsula. The North-South Joint Declaration of 15 June 2000 is a declaration on realizing independence and peaceful reunification by the Korean nation itself, rejecting foreign interference.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“If there is anything that the United States does favour, it is aggravated tension on the Korean peninsula, to be used as a pretext to reinforce its military forces in the north- east Asian region. By doing so, the United States aims to strengthen its armed forces in the region and thus contain the ever-growing, strong Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and neighbouring countries within its world supremacy strategy. That is the real intention of the United States. It is quite preposterous that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, under the groundless United States sanctions, takes part in the Talks to discuss its own nuclear abandonment. That is the matter of principle on which even the slightest concession cannot be tolerated.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“As for the Joint Statement, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea remains committed to implementing all its agreed provisions on an equal footing. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is sure to get greater benefit from implementation of the agreed provisions of the talks. That is why it is willing, more than any other country, to hold the talks. However, the United States, soon after the announcement of that Joint Statement, wasted no time in imposing financial sanctions upon the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, a dialogue partner, eventually scrapping the 27 06-53609 already agreed itinerary for the following rounds of the Talks and creating the present impasse. In view of these facts, it is crystal clear that the United States is not in favour of the six-party talks and the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“The United States policy towards the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has gone beyond mere hostility, going so far as to pose nuclear threats, even by designating it part of an “axis of evil” and the target of pre-emptive strikes, thus driving the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to inevitably possess a nuclear deterrent. The Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea maintains its consistent position of seeking to resolve the issue of denuclearizing the Korean peninsula peacefully through dialogue and negotiation. As the world knows well, the core elements stipulated in the Joint Statement of 19 September 2005, adopted at the six-party talks, are the respective commitments of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the United States to abandon its nuclear programme and to live in peaceful coexistence.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“As is well known, the Korean people have suffered a tragic history; after the nearly half-century- long tyrannical military occupation by Japan they have been living in a state of war with the United States for 60 years. Against this background, the Korean people aspire for peace more than any other country. Today there persist on the Korean peninsula touch-and-go critical tension and confrontation, rather than durable peace and security. The source is none other than the vicious, hostile policy of the United States towards the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula is not exceptional either, as it originates from United States nuclear threats.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Such a reality is a serious lesson to us all that a country with powerful strength, a just deterrent, is capable of safeguarding the dignity and sovereignty of a nation by itself. Herein lies the necessity and justness of the Songun policy of General Kim Jong Il, the respected leader of our people. The Songun policy is a sure guarantee of the ability of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to safeguard its sovereignty and security and ensure peace and stability on the Korean peninsula, and in the region as a whole, in the face of the ever-hardening, hostile policy of the United States towards it. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s possession of deterrent power, solely for self- defence, is also fully in line with the interest of the countries of the region in peace and security and a peaceful environment.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Worse still are the invasions of sovereign States, either openly committed or disregarded, and even fanned under the pretext of non- proliferation and anti-terrorism, giving rise to the massacre of innocent people and the destruction of international peace and security. The threats and high-handed acts of the super- Power are becoming more and more obvious, with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as their target. The United States adventurous military manoeuvres, such as military exercises and an economic blockade of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, continue to be tolerated, while the routine missile test-firings of our army for self-defence have been condemned as a threat to international peace and security.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Allow me first, on behalf of my delegation, to congratulate Ms. Haya Rashed Al-Khalifa on her election as President and to express my conviction that the session will be successful under her able leadership. The desire of humankind for a peaceful and prosperous world in the new century is still faced with grave challenges. The unilateralism and high-handed acts of the super-Power are becoming so reckless as to trample on the principles of respect for the sovereign equality of all States, the fundamental basis of the United Nations Charter, thereby arousing international society’s serious concern.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“The Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will in the future continue to regard independence, peace and friendship as the main ideals of its foreign policy and further strengthen its friendly and cooperative relations with all States Members of the United Nations that respect our sovereignty and actively contribute to international efforts to establish a just, equitable and new world order.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“The reform of the Security Council should be undertaken in such a way as to enable it to ensure the full representation and interests of the non-aligned and other developing countries, which account for the overwhelming majority of Member States and contribute to a fair solution to disputes. In addition, practical measures should be taken to actively assist the developing countries in their efforts to achieve sustainable development by strengthening the role of the United Nations and its affiliated organs in the socio-economic fields.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“Disputes should be resolved peacefully through dialogue and negotiations, and there is no justification whatsoever for the unilateral use of force, such as the armed invasion of sovereign States. Moreover, the Organization should be democratized so that all international issues can be resolved in the common interests of the Member States. In that regard, our delegation is of the view that the General Assembly should be empowered to review and approve the resolutions of the Security Council relating to sanctions and the use of force directly affecting international peace and security.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“I take this opportunity to extend my gratitude to the States Members of the United Nations for their active support for and understanding of our principled stand and hope that they will continue to contribute to the peaceful settlement of the nuclear issue between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the United States by maintaining their balanced approach. If the United Nations is to fulfil its mission for international peace and security and socio-economic development, it should play a leading role in addressing the major international issues in accordance with the objectives and principles of its Charter. To that end, the United Nations should no longer tolerate unilateralism and high-handedness, which constitute a serious violation of the Charter and existing international law.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“Nevertheless, the increasingly hostile policy of the United States and the clandestine nuclear-related experiments recently revealed in South Korea are major stumbling blocks to the continuation of the talks. Given this serious situation, in which the basis of the negotiations has been totally destroyed and the secret 30 nuclear-related experiments in South Korea have not yet been clarified, we are unable to participate in the talks aimed at discussing the nuclear-weapons programme. Therefore, if the six-party talks are to be resumed, the basis for the talks demolished by the United States should be properly restored and the truth of the secret nuclear experiments in South Korea clarified completely.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“The United States has gone so far as to slander and debase the supreme leadership of its dialogue partner. It also forces us to disarm ourselves like a defeated nation, thus attempting to forcibly dismantle our nuclear programme first and to overthrow our system through complete, verifiable, irreversible dismantlement. Consequently, the basis of negotiations, which were hardly moving towards a resolution of the nuclear issue, has been completely destroyed. If the United States wishes to coexist peacefully with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea by abandoning its hostile policy, the nuclear issue will be resolved properly. With regard to the six-party talks, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is willing to resume them.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“Of course, the freeze will be followed by objective verification. In order to further clarify our will to dismantle the nuclear deterrent, we had intended to include in our freeze a halt to the manufacture, testing and transfer of nuclear weapons. The United States, however, disregarding the common understanding and agreement reached at the third round of six-party talks, has further intensified its hostile and increasingly overt acts against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, even openly announcing that there would be no reward for the freezing and dismantling of our nuclear facilities. Most recently, the United States adopted a bill on human rights in North Korea and thus made it legal to provide financial and material support for overthrowing our system and to force third countries to do so.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“By offering this proposal, it is our intention, first, to build mutual confidence, and, eventually, to resolve the nuclear issue fundamentally by addressing each other’s concerns and meeting respective demands step by step, on the basis of simultaneous actions, given that the current situation is characterized by hostile relations between the two countries and extreme distrust. The proposed “reward for freeze” process would be a confidence-building measure between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the United States. Such confidence will be possible only when the United States rewards us for imposing a freeze. It is only natural that everything should have a beginning and an order. From that point of view, our freeze will be the first step towards the eventual dismantling of our nuclear programme.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“The “reward for freeze” proposal provides for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to freeze all nuclear-weapon-related facilities and the output from their operations, on the condition that the United States abandon its hostile policy, in particular its demands relating to the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement of our nuclear programme and, at the same time, that it lift its economic sanctions and blockade against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, remove the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea from its list of the sponsors of terrorism and participate in an energy compensation scheme involving two million kilowatts of capacity.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“In this regard, at the third round of the six-party talks last June, the countries concerned shared the view that it was important that both sides adhere to the word-for-word and action-for-action principle and the “corresponding measures for freeze” approach, and reached an agreement.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“If the United States were to renounce practically its hostile policy towards the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, including the cessation of its nuclear threats, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea would, accordingly, be willing to scrap its nuclear deterrent. On the basis of that position, the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea proposed a package solution underpinned by the word-for-word and action-for-action principle aimed at achieving a peaceful settlement of the nuclear issue. As the first step towards that end, we offered the flexible “reward for freeze” proposal.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“The nuclear deterrent capability of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea constitutes a legitimate means of self-defence to counter the ever- 29 growing nuclear threat of the United States and its aggression against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, as well as a reliable means to defend the sovereignty, peace and security of the country. The denuclearization of the Korean peninsula is our goal, and it is the consistent position of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to address peacefully the nuclear issue between our country and the United States through dialogue and negotiation.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“Peace is very precious to our people, who have been living for more than half a century with the heartbreaking pain of national division, forcibly brought about by outside forces, and under constant threat from the world’s only super-Power. Our people aspire to peace more than others, but they never beg for peace. The peace that they want to achieve is the peace of an independent life, not the peace of slaves, deprived of freedom. The confrontation on the Korean peninsula today is, in essence, a confrontation between foreign forces intruding into someone’s home and the owners of that home struggling to defend it.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“As I have made clear time and again from this rostrum, the nuclear issue is the product of the deep- rooted hostile policy towards the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea pursued by the United States for more than half a century. In other words, given the fact that the current United States Administration, which is accustomed to rejecting our system, has been attempting to eliminate the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea by force, while designating it part of an “axis of evil” and a target for pre-emptive nuclear strikes, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has been left with no other option than to possess a nuclear deterrent.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“The United States should no longer hamper the efforts of the north and the south of Korea to achieve national reconciliation, collaboration and reunification. No matter how the situation may change in the future, the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will continue to strive to overcome all the challenges of the anti-reunification forces within and without, and to open up a broad path leading to the independent reunification of the country through national cooperation, based on the great proposition, “By our nation itself”. I would like to take this opportunity to clarify once again the principled stand of our Government regarding the nuclear issue between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the United States.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“Various actions aimed at national co-prosperity were begun in accordance with the lofty spirit of the Joint Declaration. The connecting of railways and roads has proceeded, linking up the once-severed main artery of the country; contacts and mutual travel at all levels increased; and inter-Korean economic cooperation has been guaranteed at the institutional level. It is regrettable, however, that that tortuous process of reconciliation and cooperation between the north and the south of Korea was not sustained until durable peace and reunification could be achieved. That is because the process is unwelcome to the United States, which is therefore dead-set against improved relations and the ongoing cooperative activities, which are taking place at all levels between the north and the south of Korea.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“The Songun policy — the independent policy of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea — serves as a reliable deterrent to ensure peace and security, not only on the Korean peninsula, but also in North-East Asia and the rest of the world. We feel great pride and self-confidence in that respect. The reunification of the country is a prerequisite for achieving a durable peace on the Korean peninsula, and we are steadfast in our determination to achieve national reunification, independently, on the basis of the North-South Joint Declaration of 15 June. That Joint Declaration is one of national independence, as well as a milestone of reunification indicating the path towards national reconciliation, collaboration and reunification.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“The acute political and military situation prevailing in and around the Korean peninsula proves clearly once again how right it was of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to have built up its strong self-defensive military power to prevent war and ensure peace, upholding the Songun policy of the respected General Kim Jong Il. The more vicious the attempts of outside forces to isolate and stifle the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the higher our army and people, firmly united around their leader, hold up the banner of Songun and push ahead with their struggle to build a prosperous and powerful State, with hope for the future and devotion to the socialist cause.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“One of the regions where unilateralism and high- handedness are most rampant is North-East Asia — to be more specific, the Korean peninsula. On the Korean peninsula, the national division forcibly brought about by outside forces has continued for more than half a century, and the danger of war is snowballing, owing to extreme attempts by the United States to isolate and stifle the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and to threats of pre-emptive strikes against it. At this very moment, all kinds of sophisticated war equipment are being deployed in and around the 28 Korean peninsula, targeting the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“Unilateralism and high-handedness are becoming increasingly evident, giving rise to aggression, arbitrariness and instability in many parts of the world. Consequently, the vicious circle in which the sovereignty and interests of weak and small countries are trampled for the sake of the exclusive interests of certain other countries continues unabated. Today, the main factors undermining international peace and stability are unilateralism and high-handed acts based on the logic of power. The challenges facing humankind today require, more urgently than ever, United Nations Member States to strengthen their joint efforts to seek to ensure equitable international relations based on multilateralism that fully observe the universal principles of respect for sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity and mutual benefit.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“On behalf of the delegation of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, I should like at the outset to congratulate you, Mr. Ping, on your election as President of the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session. I believe that your skilful leadership of this session will yield fruitful results. I also appreciate the active efforts of the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, to ensure the central role of the United Nations in addressing major international issues. Four years have passed since we marked the beginning of the new century. However, humankind is still confronted with grave challenges in its efforts to realize the aspirations of peoples to build a peaceful and prosperous world.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)