1. We call upon all states concerned to initiate negotiations immediately with the aim of bringing about a peaceful solution to the current crisis over Korean Peninsula.
   
   • In such negotiations, the US should commit itself not to preemptively attack or take coercive measures such as military threats or blockades against the DPRK. Sovereignty of all nation states should be fairly respected, and any strategies, threats or commitments to forcibly change the DPRK's regime from outside should be abandoned. The US should also reaffirm its commitment for negative security assurance under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), that is its guarantee that it will not threaten or use nuclear weapons against any non-nuclear-weapon State.
   
   • At the same time, the DPRK should clearly announce its intention to abandon any nuclear weapons program. It should disclose all information on its alleged programs and agree to place its nuclear facilities under international inspection by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as well as accepting other verification mechanisms. In this context the DPRK should return to the NPT.
   
2. We are concerned that the current policies of Japan and the ROK are actually making the search for peace more difficult. Both governments should clearly express their commitment to bring about a peaceful solution and to build a sustainable regional security framework.
   
   * Japan should make clear its willingness to solve the problems through dialogue. It should continue normalization talks based on the Pyongyang Declaration of September 17, 2002. We are deeply concerned that Japan is radically strengthening its military ties with the US, particularly in the context of the recent contingency legislation and the decision to dispatch troops under the command of the US-UK occupation forces in Iraq. Such policies, together with the trend to revising Japan's Peace Constitution, are increasing regional tension.
   
   • Even though the ROK government calls for a peaceful solution, its commitment to peace is insufficient. We regret the ROK's support for the war on Iraq and its dispatch of troops to Iraq. Despite the government's claim that supporting the war on Iraq would bring about a peaceful solution of the Korean nuclear crisis, the regional situation is actually worsening. The ROK government is increasing its military budget and allowing the US military capability in the region to increase. Such policies contradict the ROK's commitment to its "Policy for Peace and Prosperity".
   
3. We call upon the governments of Japan and the ROK to abandon their efforts to introduce missile defense systems in Northeast Asia. Such an introduction would trigger a new arms race in the region. It would also increase the possibility of a US preemptive option on DPRK, escalating the danger of war on the Korean Peninsula.
   
   •We call for the establishment of alternative regional security frameworks which are non-discriminatory, sustainable and human-oriented.
   
   *We call for the establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free zone (NWFZ) in Northeast Asia. The three countries of Japan, ROK and DPRK should initiate negotiations, based on the 1992 Joint Declaration for Denuclearization of Korean Peninsula and Japan's Non-Nuclear Three Principle, to denuclearize the region with fair and effective verification. The three nuclear-weapon States, the US, China and Russia, should join those negotiations and provide legally binding security assurances to the states parties of the NWFZ.
   
   *We call for a revision of Japan-US and ROK-US security arrangements in order to promote regional disarmament.
   Any redeployment of US Forces in the region should be made in a manner that contributes to the reduction of forces and regional stability. The presence of US military bases in the region have led to numerous cases of human rights abuses as well as serious environmental pollution. To end these practices, the Status of Forces Agreements (SOFA) with the United States should be revised both in Japan and ROK.
   
   •We are determined to pursue a common vision and to create common frameworks for sustainable and human-oriented regional security.
   
   Members of parliaments in the region should be urged to participate in regional discussions concerning the relevant peace and security issues in the region. Pursuing a sustainable and human-oriented regional security system requires that any conditions of starvation, human rights abuse, or criminal acts carried out by governments must be challenged and brought to an end. However, launching a war or imposing economic sanctions would not eliminate human rights violations, but only increase the number of victims and worsen the humanitarian situation. In all these efforts, civil society movements in Japan and ROK, in particular, should play leading roles. At the same time, we will pursue collaboration with the citizens of China and DPRK.
   
4. We believe that the United Nations, particularly the General Assembly and the Conference on Disarmament should play a critical role in promoting peace and security in Northeast Asia.
   
   *The UN should play a special role to dismantle the Cold War system in Northeast Asia, by initiating a diplomatic process to replace the Armistice Treaty with a comprehensive peace treaty in the Korean Peninsula, and to achieve the normalization of relations between the US and DPRK, and Japan and the DPRK.
   
   *The UN should redouble its efforts to strengthen the NPT regime with a view to achieve the total elimination of nuclear weapons. We emphasize the importance of implementation of Article VI of the Treaty by nuclear-weapon States. In the context, we note the importance of the 2005 NPT Review Conference to be held in New York.
   
   •We recognize the importance of NWFZs in maintaining peace and stability in disparate regions such as Latin America, South Pacific, Southeast Asia and Africa. We urge the UN Secretary General to use his good offices to encourage regional initiatives to establish a NWFZ in Northeast Asia. Sponsoring a conference to open the negotiations would be an appropriate first step. In such a case, the Peace Boat would be willing to provide a venue onboard.

Signatories: (alphabetical order)

• AMANO Fumiko, A Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor, Japan
• Phyllis BENNIS, Institute for Policy Studies, US
• CHEONG Wook Sik, Civil Network for a Peaceful Korea, ROK
• KAWABE Ichiro, Aichi University, Japan
• KIM Hye Ok Ritsumeikan University, Japan/ROK
• PARK Jeong Eun, Center for Peace and Disarmament, People's Solidarity and Participatory Democracy, ROK

Peace Boat, Japan

• KAWASAKI Akira Program Coordinator, Japan
• Paul MASON International Division, Australia
• NOHIRA Shinsaku Executive Committee, Japan

Further Contact:

• Daini Nakahara (Peace Boat Tokyo Office) or Rachel Armstrong (NY)
• Tel:03-3363-7561 Fax:03-3363-7562 Email: tokyo[a]peaceboat.gr.jp