Ex-Seoul diplomat cautions against giving up NK denuclearization language

WASHINGTON — A former senior South Korean diplomat on Monday stressed the need to keep denuclearization language in policy toward North Korea, warning that renouncing the recalcitrant regime's denuclearization could set off a regional "nuclear domino" and other consequences. The remarks by Cho Byung-jae, who formerly served as Seoul's ambassador to Malaysia and chancellor of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy (KNDA), came after both Washington and Beijing omitted the denuclearization goal in their recently released security documents, raising questions over their commitment to working toward the objective. "Even when the prospect of denuclearization has become remote, it's really hard to give up that language of denuclearization," he said. "I think we have to keep this language for the time being." Cho highlighted the importance of maintaining the denuclearization efforts for regional security and diplomacy. "If you give up denuclearization and recognize North Korea as a nuclear weapon state, then most probably, that will spark a nuclear domino in the region, and that will deeply unWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times