Peace In Korean Peninsula Requires Asian African Support

Jakarta Globe, aacc2015.id, Apr 23, 2015

AACC2015, Jakarta – Peace in the Korean peninsula was the main focus of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea during AAC plenary sessions at the Jakarta Convention Centre, Wednesday (22/4). To realise such peace, support from Asian and African countries is necessary.

So said the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly of the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea, Kim Yong-nam, in the first Plenary Session of the 60-year Commemoration of the Asian African Conference (AAC) at the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC), on Wednesday (22/4). “The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has a strong commitment to achieving world peace, including in the Korean peninsula region,” Kim said.

As such, a concrete effort to realise peace must be made through strengthening South-South Cooperation. “Entering the 3rd millennium, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will play an active role in the realisation of economic prosperity and peace,” he said.

Kim went on to say that the spirit of the Ten Principles of Bandung in 1955 would strengthen the unity of the peoples of Asia and Africa. “The birth of the Ten Principles of Bandung cannot be separated from the tremendous spirit of Asian African leaders to escape from imperialism,” he added.

The principle of state sovereignty, Kim further explained, resulted in the liberation of Asian African peoples from the shackles of colonialism. “Now, with the new Asian African strategic partnership, progress in the social, political, and economic sectors can be truly realised,” he said.

At the same time, Kim expressed his belief in a need for mutual respect towards the domestic affairs of any country. “Other countries have no right to criticise our country, including the issues of human rights and nuclear weapons,” he said.

He reaffirmed that the mobilisation of foreign troops in the Korean peninsula will definitely affect the peace process. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea are still at war, and the two countries have signed no peace treaty since the 1953 ceasefire. The Republic of Korea gained military support from the United States during the conflict with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. (Translator: Muhardi)