Wednesday, July 05, 2006
North Korea Thumbs Its Nose * Mexico Election Dispute
What Next ?
Pyongyang went ahead and test fired a seventh ballistic missile despite warnings from the international community."TOKYO July 5 -- Japan slapped limited economic sanctions on North Korea Wednesday and moved with the United States to condemn Pyongyang in advance of a hastily called session of the U. N. Security Council after the Stalinist state unnerved the region by test launching a barrage of least seven missiles. After firing six missiles over four hours early Wednesday, North Korea continued its unprecedented series of tests by sending a seventh into the Sea of Japan some 12 hours later during rush hour in Japanese cities."
The Guardian: "In a typically defiant riposte, Pyongyang said the missile tests were its right as a sovereign nation, despite Japan's claims they violated a moratorium on missile tests agreed between the countries in 2002. "The missile launch is an issue that is entirely within our sovereignty. No one has the right to dispute it," Ri Pyong-dok, a researcher at the North Korean foreign ministry, said on Japanese television. "On the missile launch, we are not bound by any agreement."
The Guardian: "In a typically defiant riposte, Pyongyang said the missile tests were its right as a sovereign nation, despite Japan's claims they violated a moratorium on missile tests agreed between the countries in 2002. "The missile launch is an issue that is entirely within our sovereignty. No one has the right to dispute it," Ri Pyong-dok, a researcher at the North Korean foreign ministry, said on Japanese television. "On the missile launch, we are not bound by any agreement."
- The missile launch is an issue that is entirely within our sovereignty. No one has the right to dispute it," Ri Pyong-dok, a researcher at the North Korean foreign ministry, said on Japanese television. "On the missile launch, we are not bound by any agreement."
- The security council is to discuss a Japanese resolution condemning the tests. Japan's foreign minister, Taro Aso, said there was a "very high possibility" the UN would impose economic sanctions against North Korea.
- The Japanese defence agency said the first six missiles were fired between 3.30am and 8.20am and that all had landed in the Sea of Japan several hundred miles from the Japanese coast. Tokyo condemned the tests and said North Korea had "threatened the stability of the international community". The US called them a "provocation".
- "The United States strongly condemns these missile launches and North Korea's unwillingness to heed calls for restraint from the international community," White House spokesman Tony Snow said.
- China called for a cool-headed response to North Korea's missile tests, according to Kyodo news agency, which quoted foreign ministry official Liu Jianchao as saying that countries should respond calmly to the missile test launches.
All bets are off. The situation has changed dramatically since initial vote counts were announced. Andrés Manuel López Obrador, the left leader and his supporters are claiming fraud and the lead by his opponent, Felipe Calderón, has shrunk from 1 percent to 0.64 percent. "MEXICO CITY, July 4 -- A big question looms over Mexico: Will Andres Manuel López Obrador unleash the fury of the streets?"
- Emotions here intensified Tuesday as Mexico's electoral commission counted additional ballots, shrinking the lead of López Obrador's opponent, Felipe Calderon, from 400,000 votes, or 1 percent, to 257,000 votes, or 0.64 percent. Lopez Obrador's supporters have also reacted emotionally as the populist candidate and his top aides have outlined a growing list of alleged election law violations. No large demonstrations have been held yet, apparently because López Obrador's supporters are waiting for a signal from him and because they want to see the results of an official count that begins Wednesday.
- Still, the rhetoric is getting more heated. On Tuesday, López Obrador's campaign demanded a ballot-by-ballot recount. And Emilio Serrano, a federal legislator from the candidate's Democratic Revolutionary Party, or PRD, said in an interview that violence is possible if the vote-tampering allegations are proved.
