Japan sidesteps question on US considering N.Korea attack on Japan as on U

[CHIMO]

Japan sidesteps question on US considering N.Korea attack on Japan as on US

UNITED NATIONS, Oct 9 (KUNA) -- Japan did not comment on a US assertion during a Security Council closed session on Monday that any attack on Japan by North Korea would be considered on the US.

The council met to discuss North Korea's nuclear test earlier in the day and ways to punish Pyongyang with sanctions.

During that session US envoy John Bolton was quoted by diplomats as saying that Washington would consider any attack by Pyongyang on South Korea or Japan as an attack on the US.

Asked if he was gratified by the US comment, Japanese envoy and council president Kenzo Oshima told reporters "this relates to the alliance relationship between Japan and the US and also between South Korea and the US. I would not go further than that at this point." He said "the Japanese government has been in close touch with the US. We will be coordinating action and hopefully will be able to come up with a resolution which should be strong, swift and clear in its message." As to the elements of the US-drafted resolution under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter and that will be discussed later in the day by the council at the experts' level, Oshima said "we need to look at them very carefully. But in very, very general terms, we and the US see eye to eye on many of them." (end) sj.



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http://www.kuna.net.kw/home/story.aspx?Language=en&DSNO=911926

Canada slams NATO's Afghan role

OTTAWA — Canada's Defence Minister is confronting those NATO countries with troops deployed in relatively stable parts of Afghanistan — including Germany, France, Spain and Italy — saying they must lift the restrictions that prevent their soldiers from taking on the more dangerous tasks being shouldered by Canadians.

It's a problem that one former Canadian military leader says threatens the future of the 57-year-old North Atlantic Treaty Organization — an alliance founded on the principle that an attack against one of its members is an attack against all.

Canadian troops are paying the ultimate price with a frequency that has caused many at home to question Canada's involvement in Afghanistan. Trooper Mark Andrew Wilson, killed in a roadside bomb explosion this weekend, was the 40th Canadian soldier to die in the conflict.

But some of the large European countries with troops in the safer northern and western regions will not allow their soldiers to move into the danger zones when they are needed, even on a temporary basis. And some are not permitted to fight at night.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061009.wxafghan09/BNStory/Afghanistan/home