New Delhi: Foreign Ministers of the Quad group of nations, including US, India, Australia and Japan, have urged countries against transfer or procurement of arms from North Korea in a joint statement issued Friday. The statement comes a week after North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un visited Russia, triggering global concerns about potential weapons transfer deals between the two countries.
“We stress the importance of addressing proliferation of nuclear and missile technologies related to North Korea in the region and beyond and urge all UN Member States to abide by the related UNSCRs [United Nations Security Council Resolutions] including the prohibition on the transfer to North Korea or procurement from North Korea of all arms and related material,” said the joint statement.
The meeting came on the sidelines of the ongoing 78th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York City.
Last week, Kim visited Russia to hold talks with President Vladimir Putin, which triggered global concerns of potential weapons transfer deals that could assist Moscow in its war against Ukraine.
During this trip, Kim visited key military and technology sites in Russia and the two leaders vowed to deepen defence cooperation.
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No mention of debt crisis, but talks of food security
Unlike the readouts issued after the Quad foreign ministers’ meeting in March, the statement issued Friday did not mention the debt crisis facing certain countries in the world.
That joint statement, issued on 3 March, condemned North Korea’s ballistic missile launches and urged against the proliferation of nuclear and missile technologies, but it did not include specific language on arms transfer.
“We reaffirm our commitment to the complete de-nuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula…We reconfirm the necessity of immediate resolution of the abductions issue. We stress the importance of addressing proliferation of nuclear and missile technologies related to North Korea in the region and beyond,” that statement had said.
It also sought to address the debt crisis “through sustainable, transparent and fair lending and financing practices”.
But despite not mentioning the debt crisis, the latest joint statement does explicitly talk about global food security and the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
“We are deeply concerned about the global food security situation and support the efforts of the UN in the resumption of the Black Sea Grain Initiative,” the Quad Foreign Leaders’ statement Friday said.
The Initiative on the Safe Transportation of Grain and Foodstuffs from Ukrainian Ports — known commonly as the Black Sea Grain Initiative — is an agreement signed between Russia and Ukraine, who are major grain exporters.
The pact, brokered by Turkey and the UN and signed in July last year, was meant to allow Ukraine to safely export grain, oil, and fertiliser through its ports along the Black Sea.
But this July, Moscow backed out of the deal, sending up global food prices.
The next Quad foreign ministers’ meeting is slated to take place in Japan next year.
(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)
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