Asean urges N.Korea to comply with international obligations

Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) have urged North Korea to seriously comply with international obligations and voiced concerns over Pyongyang's test-firing of mid-range ballistic missiles.

The 10 leaders from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam held their 30th annual summit and retreat in Manila on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, whose country holds the rotating chair of Asean this year, officially released the chairman's statement on Sunday.

"We discussed the situation on the Korean Peninsula and are gravely concerned about recent developments, including (DPRK's) two nuclear tests in 2016 and subsequent launches using ballistic missile technology like the submarine-launched ballistic missile," the Asean leaders said in the statement issued at the end of the summit.

"We urged (North Korea) to immediately cease all actions that violate its international obligations and contravene UN Security Council resolutions," the leaders said.

The leaders also reiterated their support for the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, and "for the concerned parties to exercise restraint in order to maintain peace and stability" in the region.

"We strongly urged (North Korea) to comply with these resolutions and acknowledged the importance to exercise self-restraint and called on all parties to exert collective efforts in the interest of maintaining peace, security and stability in the region and the world," the leaders said.

The Asean group is marking its 50th anniversary this year.

--IANS

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