US warns North Korea directly
Washington (dpa) - In a rare direct message to North Korean officials, the United States warned that a nuclear test would be an "extremely provocative act" that could destabilise East Asia, the US State Department confirmed Thursday.
US officials delivered the message to North Korea representatives at the United Nations through what US diplomats call the "New York channel," a method of communication used by the two countries because they have no formal diplomatic relations.
The message "stated our view that a nuclear test would be an extremely provocative act that would represent a threat to peace and security," State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey said.
"What we are trying to concentrate on right now is to see what efforts can be made by all parties to convince the North Koreans not to go ahead with this."
North Korea announced Tuesday that it intends to test a nuclear bomb, sparking international condemnation. The United States is lobbying the UN Security Council to impose sanctions on North Korea if it proceeds with a test.
Casey said that US officials have not received a reply from North Korea following the message in New York.
Meanwhile, US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said that US intelligence agencies were closely monitoring a suspected weapons test site in North Korea.
"At some point we'll know if (the North Korean threat) is words or actually a test," Rumsfeld said. "It will speak for itself."
The Security Council was expected to issue a statement this week urging North Korea to halt all nuclear activities and return to six- nation talks aimed at persuading Pyongyang to abandon its atomic- weapons programme.
The six-nation negotiations, which include China, Japan, Russia, the United States and the two Koreas, have been stalled since the last meeting a year ago in Beijing.
