CHINA / National
China urges North Korea not to test missile
(AP)
Updated: 2006-06-29 09:32
Chinese premier urged North Korea on Wednesday to desist from firing a
long-range missile, while South Korea called on the United States to talk
directly with North Korea to forestall a launch.
Premier Wen Jiabao said China was paying close attention to information
that North Korea may be preparing a test-launch and urged Pyongyang to
avoid any actions that would aggravate regional tensions and further
derail long-stalled negotiations on the North's nuclear fuel programs.
China's Premier Wen Jiabao (R) and Australian Prime Minister John Howard
shake hands at the opening ceremony of the Guangdong Liquefied Natural
Gas Project Phase at Dapeng Bay in China's southern coast city of
Shenzhen June 28, 2006. [Reuters]
"We hope that the various parties will proceed from the greater interest
of maintaining stability on the Korean Peninsula and refrain from taking
measures that will worsen the situation," Wen said at a joint news
conference with visiting Australian Prime Minister John Howard.
Wen's remarks Wednesday were the first time the senior Chinese leadership
acknowledged concerns about a possible missile launch in the two weeks
since intelligence reports detected North Korean preparations.
"No country in the world has a greater influence on North Korea than
China has," said Howard, in Shenzhen to inaugurate deliveries of
Australian natural gas and discuss a free-trade agreement with Wen.
According to intelligence reports, the missile, a Taepodong-2, was being
fueled at a launch pad on North Korea's northeastern coast. A US
government estimate puts the range of the Taepodong-2 missile at between
5,000 and 7,500 miles, making it capable of reaching the United States.
A senior South Korean official urged Washington to talk directly with
Pyongyang, a demand a North Korean diplomat has hinted at but that the
Bush administration has refused.
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