ID :
10964
Fri, 06/27/2008 - 20:25
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/10964
The shortlink copeid
G-8 commits to Afghan efforts but N. Korea nuke move gets spotlight
KYOTO, June 26 Kyodo - Foreign ministers of the Group of Eight nations affirmed Thursday their commitments to implementing aid to strengthen the Afghan border against the growth of terrorism, but attention at their talks in Kyoto was dominated by concurrent developments over a major breakthrough in the North Korean
denuclearization process.
''We discussed Myanmar, Afghanistan and Pakistan, and agreed especially to prop up our support for tribal areas along the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan -- some 150 projects amounting to $4 billion from the G-8 alone,'' Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura said after a working dinner with his counterparts on the opening day of the two-day meeting.
But while Afghanistan was on the top of the G-8 ministers' agenda, including the issuance of a joint statement on Afghan assistance, North Korea stole the spotlight.
China announced Thursday afternoon that North Korea has submitted its long-delayed declaration giving details of its nuclear programs.
U.S. President George W. Bush subsequently announced that Washington will move to take North Korea off its list of state sponsors of terrorism following the nuclear declaration.
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband was quoted by a Japanese Foreign Ministry official as telling Komura in talks earlier in the afternoon that Thursday was an ''important day'' for nonproliferation and the two ministers agreed to keep a close watch on Pyongyang's moves.
Japan, which fears that delisting the North would undermine its efforts to keep pressure on North Korea to resolve the cases of Japanese nationals abducted by its agents, is eager to seek cooperation from the other G-8 members, especially the United States.
''North Korea's submission of the declaration is a good thing but the problem is the contents,'' Komura told reporters. ''We must thoroughly verify the contents.''
He also stressed that he will discuss the issue with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at bilateral talks Friday, including Bush's promise Thursday that the United States will ''never forget'' the abduction issue.
Komura has repeatedly said earlier this week he will urge that delisting be used as a ''bargaining chip'' to the fullest extent in pressing for progress in resolving the abductions.
The Japanese and U.S. chief delegates to the six-party talks on North Korea's denuclearization, Akitaka Saiki and Christopher Hill, also met in Kyoto late Thursday afternoon apparently to discuss Pyongyang's submission of the declaration.
In the joint statement on Afghan assistance, the ministers reaffirmed their ''firm and long-term commitment'' by endorsing more than 150 projects, worth some $4 billion, currently planned or implemented by G-8 members to support social economic development in the border areas.
''These critical efforts constitute an integral part of our strategy to combat terrorism by promoting legitimate economic opportunities and alternatives in isolated communities where narco-trafficking and extremism are endemic,'' the statement said.
In addition, they called on Afghanistan's neighbors to ''play a constructive role'' for the country's stability, especially encouraging Afghanistan and Pakistan to engage in dialogue in a ''mutually beneficial manner.''
The 152 projects include 33 on improving customs and border management, 25 on capacity building, 21 on education, 16 on healthcare and 12 on infrastructure, Japanese Foreign Ministry officials said.
Projects for refugees and internally displaced persons, drug trafficking and food aid are also on the list.
The major nations also vowed to work toward improving aid effectiveness, step up counter-narcotics efforts and support the role of the United Nations to lead international civilian efforts in Afghanistan, the statement said.
Ahead of the G-8 ministerial meeting, Komura held separate talks with his counterparts from Britain, Canada and Italy. They took up the issues of Iran's defiance of international calls to halt uranium enrichment, political violence in Zimbabwe, humanitarian concerns in Myanmar, and the surge in food and oil prices, Japanese officials said.
In addition to Komura, Miliband and Rice, the other members at the two-day talks are Canadian Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister David Emerson, French Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Bernard Kouchner, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, and Russian First Vice Foreign Minister Andrei Denisov.
The European Union is also represented at the talks.
The meeting is the last of a series of G-8 ministerial talks leading up to the July 7-9 summit to be held in Hokkaido, where the world economy, food crisis, climate change and African development will be key issues.
denuclearization process.
''We discussed Myanmar, Afghanistan and Pakistan, and agreed especially to prop up our support for tribal areas along the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan -- some 150 projects amounting to $4 billion from the G-8 alone,'' Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura said after a working dinner with his counterparts on the opening day of the two-day meeting.
But while Afghanistan was on the top of the G-8 ministers' agenda, including the issuance of a joint statement on Afghan assistance, North Korea stole the spotlight.
China announced Thursday afternoon that North Korea has submitted its long-delayed declaration giving details of its nuclear programs.
U.S. President George W. Bush subsequently announced that Washington will move to take North Korea off its list of state sponsors of terrorism following the nuclear declaration.
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband was quoted by a Japanese Foreign Ministry official as telling Komura in talks earlier in the afternoon that Thursday was an ''important day'' for nonproliferation and the two ministers agreed to keep a close watch on Pyongyang's moves.
Japan, which fears that delisting the North would undermine its efforts to keep pressure on North Korea to resolve the cases of Japanese nationals abducted by its agents, is eager to seek cooperation from the other G-8 members, especially the United States.
''North Korea's submission of the declaration is a good thing but the problem is the contents,'' Komura told reporters. ''We must thoroughly verify the contents.''
He also stressed that he will discuss the issue with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at bilateral talks Friday, including Bush's promise Thursday that the United States will ''never forget'' the abduction issue.
Komura has repeatedly said earlier this week he will urge that delisting be used as a ''bargaining chip'' to the fullest extent in pressing for progress in resolving the abductions.
The Japanese and U.S. chief delegates to the six-party talks on North Korea's denuclearization, Akitaka Saiki and Christopher Hill, also met in Kyoto late Thursday afternoon apparently to discuss Pyongyang's submission of the declaration.
In the joint statement on Afghan assistance, the ministers reaffirmed their ''firm and long-term commitment'' by endorsing more than 150 projects, worth some $4 billion, currently planned or implemented by G-8 members to support social economic development in the border areas.
''These critical efforts constitute an integral part of our strategy to combat terrorism by promoting legitimate economic opportunities and alternatives in isolated communities where narco-trafficking and extremism are endemic,'' the statement said.
In addition, they called on Afghanistan's neighbors to ''play a constructive role'' for the country's stability, especially encouraging Afghanistan and Pakistan to engage in dialogue in a ''mutually beneficial manner.''
The 152 projects include 33 on improving customs and border management, 25 on capacity building, 21 on education, 16 on healthcare and 12 on infrastructure, Japanese Foreign Ministry officials said.
Projects for refugees and internally displaced persons, drug trafficking and food aid are also on the list.
The major nations also vowed to work toward improving aid effectiveness, step up counter-narcotics efforts and support the role of the United Nations to lead international civilian efforts in Afghanistan, the statement said.
Ahead of the G-8 ministerial meeting, Komura held separate talks with his counterparts from Britain, Canada and Italy. They took up the issues of Iran's defiance of international calls to halt uranium enrichment, political violence in Zimbabwe, humanitarian concerns in Myanmar, and the surge in food and oil prices, Japanese officials said.
In addition to Komura, Miliband and Rice, the other members at the two-day talks are Canadian Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister David Emerson, French Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Bernard Kouchner, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, and Russian First Vice Foreign Minister Andrei Denisov.
The European Union is also represented at the talks.
The meeting is the last of a series of G-8 ministerial talks leading up to the July 7-9 summit to be held in Hokkaido, where the world economy, food crisis, climate change and African development will be key issues.
