Japan calls for elimination of WMDs

UNITED NATIONS: Japan, the world's sole victim of nuclear weapons, has called for total elimination of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), saying it would submit a draft resolution in the UN General Assembly seeking concrete measures to achieve the goal.

Addressing the United Nations General Assembly, Japan's newly appointed foreign minister Masahiko Koumura welcomed the measures taken by the Security Council for ending the nuclear weapons programme of North Korea, and for ensuring that Iran does not produce such weapons.

"It is up to all of us to translate the will of the international community into concrete action through full implementation of the relevant resolutions," Koumura said. He said that the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction "requires the undivided attention of humankind."

Koumura also pledged Japan's ongoing support for African development, since "without peace in Africa, the world at large will not enjoy peace and prosperity." In Darfur, the country has provided assistance worth $85 million, he said.

The Foreign Minister voiced hope that the new African Union-UN hybrid peacekeeping mission, or UNAMID, will be deployed there as soon as possible. Elsewhere, Japan is dedicated to assisting other countries consolidate peace and stability, he said.

In concert with the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), Japan has played a leading role in disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR), and in disbanding illegal armed groups in the war-torn South Asian nation.