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Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

JCP protests North Korea's missile launch

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo on July 5 held a news conference in the Diet and published the following statement condemning the missile launch carried out earlier in the day by North Korea.

The Japanese government on the early morning of July 5 announced that North Korea launched several ballistic missiles or projectiles.

North Korea insists that missile launches are a matter of its sovereign right. This excuse can convince no one.

Launching missiles or rockets into the high seas without prior notification endangers the navigation of aircraft and ships, and violates international law. The recent North Korean act is in violation of international agreements, including the Japan-DPRK Pyongyang Declaration (Sep. 17, 2002), in which North Korea promised a moratorium on missile launches. It threatens the peace and stability in Northeast Asia.

The JCP expresses a strong protest against the North Korean missile launch that was carried out in disregard of international law as well as international agreements.

The JCP strongly demands that North Korea immediately end such lawless acts and comply with the Japan-DPRK Pyongyang Declaration as well as international law.

The JCP reiterates its opinion that if North Korea is to become a member of the international community, it is indispensable for it to settle the accounts of its past lawless international acts and establish a position of complying with international law.
- Akahata, July 6, 2006