ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY DIRECTOR-GENERAL CALLS ON DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE’S

REPUBLIC OF KOREA TO REVERSE DECISION ON TREATY WITHDRAWAL

VIENNA, 10 January (IAEA) –- The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General, Mohamed ElBaradei, said today that the decision by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) was “a continuation of a policy of defiance and was counterproductive to ongoing efforts to achieve peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula”.

Dr. ElBaradei added that “the NPT, with its 188 States parties, is the cornerstone of the international community’s efforts to control the spread of nuclear weapons.  A challenge to the integrity of that Treaty may constitute a threat to international peace and security”.

“I strongly urge the DPRK to reverse its decision and to seek instead a diplomatic solution”, Dr. ElBaradei said.  “This is the only way to address the DPRK’s security and other concerns.”

He reminds the Democratic People's Republic of the international community’s readiness to engage in a dialogue towards a peaceful settlement once it had shown signs of readiness to come into compliance with its international non-proliferation obligations, but not under the threat of nuclear blackmail.

Dr. ElBaradei noted that, under article 10 of the NPT, a decision to withdraw can only be effected after three months.  He expressed the hope that, as a matter of urgency, the international community and the Democratic People's Republic, through dialogue, would arrive at an agreed and peaceful solution.

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