By BERNAMA / Pic By BLOOMBERG

Singapore • Asean has urged all concerned parties to continue working towards the realisation of lasting peace and stability on a denuclearised Korean Peninsula.

Making this call in a Joint Communiqué issued at the 51st Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting here yesterday, the 10-nation regional body also welcomed North Korea’s stated commitment to complete denuclearisation and its pledge to refrain from further nuclear and missile tests during this period.

Asean reiterated its support for all relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions and international efforts to bring about the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, saying that it will contribute to peace and stability in the region.

The Asean ministers also reiterated their commitment to preserve the South-East Asian region as a Nuclear Weapons Free Zone and free of all other weapons of mass destruction as enshrined in the Treaty on the South-East Asia Nuclear Weapons-Free Zone (SEAN- WFZ Treaty) and the Asean Charter.

“We stress the importance of the full and effective implementation of the SEANWFZ Treaty, including under the Plan of Action to Strengthen the Implementation of the SEANWFZ Treaty (2018-2022).

“We reaffirm our commitment to continuously engage the Nuclear Weapon States and intensify the ongoing efforts of all parties to resolve all outstanding issues in accordance with the objectives and principles of the SEANWFZ Treaty,” the statement said. — Bernama