Aus dismisses nuke threat

2003-07-15 08:42

Sydney - Foreign Minister Alexander Downer shrugged off on Tuesday the threat of a nuclear strike by North Korea against Australia if it takes part in a US-led operation to stop ships trafficking weapons of mass destruction.

The executive director of the Centre for Korean-American Peace, Kim Myong-Chol, who purports to be a spokesperson for Pyongyang, told ABC television from Tokyo late on Monday that North Korea would hit back against US ships interdicting North Korean vessels.

He warned that the Stalinist state would retaliate with a nuclear missile attack on major cities such as New York and Washington and if Australia was part of the interdiction, it would also be attacked.

"If Australia becomes part of American manipulation against North Korea, North Korea reserves the right to strike back on Australia - that is the official North Korean position," he said.

He claimed North Korea had reprocessed 8 000 nuclear fuel rods at its Yongbyon nuclear facility north of Pyongyang, adding: "North Korea can reach Australian mainland anytime. Unfortunately, Australia has no capacity to reach North Korea."

But Downer dismissed the threat saying said Kim Myong-Chol's comments carried no authority and North Korea did not have weapons with the range to reach Australia.

"Mr Kim is a self-appointed voice belonging to a North Korean support group in Japan," Downer said in a statement.

"We don't believe for a minute North Korea would launch some kind of nuclear attack against Australia, or have the capacity to fire nuclear missiles that sort of distance. That's if they have any capacity to fire nuclear missiles at all."

Myong-Chol also told the ABC that Prime Minister John Howard should carefully consider his approach to the issue saying: "The North Korean message is to be careful in talking. Otherwise, harm to Australia."

"North Korea is carefully monitoring all Australian behaviour, so Australia must be careful in its behaviour to North Korea."

Kim's comments followed a tough warning by Howard on Sunday that war was not yet inevitable but the global community expected North Korea to wind back its nuclear weapons programme.

Howard was due to leave the Philippines Tuesday bound for Tokyo on the second leg of a three-nation Asia tour to rally support for the US plan under which an international interception force may be launched against countries trafficking in illicit weapons and drugs.

Australia is one of 11 nations which have endorsed the plan and which have agreed to join US-led military exercises in September.

The plan is aimed partly at stepping up the pressure on North Korea, which has boasted of its nuclear ambitions and which is now reported to have missiles trained on Japan.

Downer also said the maritime force proposed to stop trafficking in illicit weapons and drugs would operate within the frame of international law and it did not appear at this stage that any changes would be needed to strengthen international law to allow the operation to go ahead.

"Certainly so far that hasn't been the conclusion of the group of 11 countries which have been looking at this, because they do think that there is quite a strong legal foundation already in place to be able to interdict ships carrying nuclear weapons or nuclear weapons components," he said.

- AFX