The 115th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union,

Reaffirming the crucial importance of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as the cornerstone of the international regime for nuclear non-proliferation and the foundation for the pursuit of nuclear disarmament,

Deploring the announcement made by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on 9 October 2006 that it had conducted a nuclear test in violation of United Nations Security Council resolution 1695 (2006) and of the statement made by the Security Council President on 6 October 2006,

Recognizing that the nuclear test conducted by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, in defiance of repeated calls from the international community, in particular the United Nations Security Council, that it exercise self-restraint, poses a challenge to the nuclear non-proliferation regime and a clear threat to international peace and security,

Recognizing that States need to take action to implement Security Council resolution 1718 (2006), adopted on 14 October 2006,

Reaffirming the need to find peaceful solutions, through diplomatic means, to the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula, and that the Six-Party Talks remain the realistic means for handling that issue,

Recalling past IPU resolutions on nuclear weapons, in particular those entitled "Importance of the non-proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction and of missiles, including the prevention of their use by terrorists" (108th Inter-Parliamentary Conference, Santiago de Chile, April 2003), "Parliamentary action to encourage all countries to sign and ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty prohibiting all nuclear testing, to encourage universal and non-discriminatory nuclear non-proliferation measures and to work towards the eventual elimination of all nuclear weapons" (101st Inter-Parliamentary Conference, Brussels, April 1999), "To comprehensively ban nuclear weapons testing and halt all present nuclear weapons tests" (94th Inter-Parliamentary Conference, Bucharest, October 1995), and "The importance of adhering to the obligations specified in the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons" (91st Inter-Parliamentary Conference, Paris, March 1994),

Determined, for the sake of peace and stability in the world, to contribute to international cooperation aimed at strengthening mechanisms for the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons,

1. Asserts on behalf of the international parliamentary community, the expectation that the world will become nuclear weapon free;

2. Strongly condemns the announcement made by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on 9 October 2006 that it had conducted a nuclear test in violation of United Nations Security Council resolution 1695 (2006) and of the statement made by the Security Council President on 6 October 2006;

3. Endorses Security Council resolution 1718 (2006), adopted on 14 October 2006;

4. Calls upon the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, pursuant to the 1994 Agreed Framework, the NPT, the 1991 Joint Declaration on the Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and the IAEA Safeguards Agreement, to retract its decision to withdraw from the NPT, to return to the NPT and the IAEA Safeguards Agreement and to fulfil all its obligations to the international community in its endeavours to promote the peaceful utilization of nuclear energy;

5. Strongly urges the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to resume relations of peace and stability in cooperation with the countries involved in the region by observing the joint statement of the Fourth Round of the Six-Party Talks and other international agreements, to comply with the relevant resolutions of past Inter-Parliamentary Conferences and Assemblies, to conduct no further nuclear tests, to abandon its nuclear development programme immediately, and to deploy no nuclear weapons, and calls upon all parties concerned to intensify ongoing diplomatic efforts, to refrain from taking any further steps that may heighten the tension, and to facilitate the prompt resumption of the Six-Party Talks, with a view to achieving the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to maintaining peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in North-East Asia;

6. Calls upon all States to redouble their efforts to prevent and curb the proliferation of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, confirming and strengthening, if necessary, their policies not to transfer equipment, materials or technology that could contribute to the proliferation of such weapons and ensuring that such policies are consistent with the relevant States' obligations under the NPT; states that this should not, however, be interpreted in such a way as to inhibit or restrict the right of States to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes in accordance with IAEA rules and regulations;

7. Reminds the international community that it must spare no effort to resolve these issues peacefully whenever possible, and expresses its firm commitment to engage in international cooperation on these issues and to contribute to global peace and stability through dialogue between parliamentarians and cooperation with the relevant international organizations.

* The delegations of India and Pakistan expressed reservations to preambular paragraph 1, as it does not refer to the States Party to the Treaty.

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