South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun yesterday described the
latest remarks by a senior Japanese official about launching a
"preemptive strike" against North Korea as an "overreaction."
"The remarks by Japan's political leaders have created a new
situation, and there is concern this could exacerbate the
situation," the president said during the dinner with a group of
ruling Uri Party officials.
Roh said South Korea would make continuous efforts to prevent
the use of military means in any form on the Korean Peninsula.
He said dialogue between South and North Korea should
continue.
Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe expressed earlier his
support for developing Japan's capability to counter-attack in the
event of a missile launch targeting Japan.
The North Korean test fired seven missiles last Wednesday,
including a long-range missile.
However, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said on
Monday that "It is a different thing when it comes to saying that
Japan should conduct a preemptive strike before actually being
attacked," as it is a "constitutional issue" and must be studied
"carefully."
(Xinhua News Agency July 12, 2006)
