SEOUL - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said yesterday that North Korea continues to pose a grave threat to international peace, and he pledged to protect South Korea with Washington’s full military might, including its nuclear weapons.
Gates and his South Korean counterpart, Kim Tae-young, said their two nations will never accept North Korea as a nuclear weapons state. They accused the regime of undermining global security with its nuclear defiance.
“The United States will continue to provide extended deterrence, using the full range of military capabilities, including the nuclear umbrella, to ensure’’ South Korea’s security, Gates told Kim ahead of their formal talks.
North Korea has long demanded that the United States withdraw its “nuclear umbrella’’ from South Korea, calling it an attempt to invade with atomic bombs. The communist regime has argued that it needs atomic weapons to cope with “US nuclear threats.’’
Washington and Seoul have repeatedly denied having any intention to attack the North.
“In addition to the traditional military threat, North Korea’s ballistic missiles and emerging nuclear weapons programs have a destabilizing effect both regionally and internationally,’’ Gates said at a joint news conference. “We will stand together.’’
After defying calls for restraint and carrying out nuclear and missile tests earlier this year, North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Il, said recently that his country could rejoin international disarmament talks.
