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2017 September 13 - 19 TOP3 [JCP]

Shii in statement condemns N. Korea’s missile launch and reiterates need for resolution through dialogue

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo on September 15 issued a statement condemning N. Korea’s missile launch, reiterating the need to deal with the situation through dialogue in combination with the tightened economic sanctions.

The full text of Shii’s statement is as follows:

JCP condemns North Korea’s missile launch and calls for taking a step toward resolution through dialogue in combination with increased economic sanctions

Shii Kazuo
Chair, Japanese Communist Party
Member of the House of Representatives of Japan

Tokyo, Japan
September 15, 2017

Today, North Korea again launched a ballistic missile over Japan without advance notice in defiance of the international community’s repeated calls for self-restraint. This is a serious threat to peace and stability in the region and the world as well as a breach of a series of the UN Security Council resolutions. The Japanese Communist Party strongly condemns North Korea’s act.

A military clash must be avoided at any cost because it will destroy global peace and stability as well as claim numerous lives.

The JCP strongly demands that North Korea comply with the UNSC resolution and stop its provocative actions immediately. We call on all states concerned to exercise self-restraint in military actions that exacerbate tensions.

The UNSC resolution unanimously adopted on September 11 imposes tougher economic sanctions and calls for “a peaceful and comprehensive solution through dialogue.” It is necessary to strengthen economic sanctions, but that alone is not enough for reducing risks and for resolving the issue. It is indispensable that steps be taken toward resolution though dialogue in combination with increased economic sanctions.

In particular, it has increasingly become an urgent task to hold direct talks between the U.S. and North Korea. Former U.S. President James Earl Carter Jr., who helped lead the Korean Peninsula crisis in 1994 to a settlement, calls for dialogue between the U.S. and North Korean leaders or their special envoys (September 12). Some leaders from European countries have expressed their intention to mediate a dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang. The JCP appeals to the global community and the Japanese government to prompt Washington and Pyongyang to hold direct talks, and take all possible measures to reduce tensions and resolve the issue in a peaceful manner.