US passes resolution condemning DPRK
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E-mail Xinhua, February 16, 2013
The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday passed a bipartisan resolution condemning the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) for its recent underground nuclear test.
The resolution, passed by a vote of 412 to 2, recognized "the grave threat that North Korea's ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programs could pose to the security of the American people, given their increasing ability to reach the United States," said the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on its website.
U.S. Republican Representative Ed Royce, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said: "North Korea's latest nuclear test is a stark reminder that Kim Jong Un is determined to develop his nuclear arsenal while depriving North Koreans of their most basic human rights."
Royce, who introduced the bill with Democratic Representative Eliot Engel, vowed to "introduce legislation that targets North Korea's ability to access hard currency" in the coming weeks, according to the website.
In addition to condemning the DPRK, the resolution reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to its alliances with Japan and South Korea.
The resolution also called on the United States government to apply additional sanctions against the DPRK and voiced its support to U.S. President Barack Obama's commitment to strengthen U.S. ballistic missile defense system to protect the country.
The bill came after the DPRK said on Tuesday that it had successfully conducted the third underground nuclear test.
DPRK's official news agency KCNA said that the test was part of the country's "practical measures of counteraction" to defend its security and sovereignty against hostile U.S. policies that have violated DPRK's "rights to launch satellite for peaceful purposes. "
Obama on Tuesday condemned the nuclear test as "highly provocative," while calling for "further swift and credible action " by the international community.
The UN Security Council on Tuesday strongly condemned the nuclear test, saying the latest move by Pyongyang is "a grave violation" of relevant UN resolutions.
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