October 13, 2006

PRINCE SULTAN IBN ABDUL AZIZ: IT IS RIDICULOUS TO THINK THAT A SAUDI MET WITH AN ISRAELI, AND EVEN MORE RIDICULOUS TO SPEAK OF A MEETING WITH SAUDI LEADERS. THE CUSTODIAN OF THE TWO HOLY MOSQUES' INITIATIVE FOR PEACE IS THE SOLUTION. THE QATARI MEDIATION FAILS AND ABOU MAZEN REVIEWS A SERIES OF OPTIONS. THE OIC PRESENTS AN INITIATIVE TO STOP THE BLOODSHED IN IRAQ. BUSH INSISTS ON STAYING IN IRAQ DESPITE THE DIFFICULT SITUATIONS AND RICE CONVEYS TO BARZANI WASHINGTON'S VIEWS. THE DEVELOPMENTS ON THE NUCLEAR ARENAS IN NORTH KOREA AND IRAN OPEN THE WAY FOR IMPOSING SANCTIONS BUT THERE IS A STILL A CHANCE FOR NEGOTIATIONS. Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Aviation and Inspector General dismissed as "ridiculous" Israeli press reports that secret talks had taken place between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and senior Saudi officials. "It is ridiculous to think that a Saudi met with an Israeli, and even more ridiculous to speak of a meeting with Saudi leaders," the Saudi Press Agency quoted Crown Prince Sultan as saying. In a previous statement, a Saudi Foreign Ministry spokesman had said reports of contacts between Saudi and Israeli officials were "fabricated." Speaking to reporters after presiding over a meeting of the board of trustees of the Prince Sultan Charitable Foundation, the crown prince said that the government was studying the matter of revising school textbooks in accordance with Shariah law. Answering another question, he said the government was closely following the case of Saudi student Humaidan Al-Turki who is serving a 25-year prison sentence in the United States. "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah is personally following the case. And we all know that when the king says something, he does it," said the crown prince. Prince Sultan said he hoped peace and stability would prevail in Iraq after the new Iraqi government was established. He also hoped that rival Palestinian groups would settle their differences for the sake of the Palestinian people. Asked about the talks he had recently in Yemen during a meeting of the Saudi-Yemeni Coordination Council, he said that the talks were "fruitful and served the interests of both nations." Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Aviation and Inspector General, has highlighted the efforts exerted by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz to support Lebanon. Prince Sultan was speaking after chairing the 12th meeting for the board of trustees of Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz Charitable Foundation. 'The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, under the leadership of King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz, has been doing its best to serve the interests of Lebanon in a manner that does not contradict with the interests of any other Arab country', he noted. He hoped that Taif agreement, which is pertaining to the settlement of the Lebanese problem, will be carried in a wise and reasonable way. As regards the situation in Iraq, Prince Sultan hoped that the Iraqis would close their ranks and solve the problems facing their country. On the situation in Palestine, Prince Sultan said the kingdom had earlier presented the project of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz, and the project was unanimously approved at the Arab summit held in Beirut. He pointed out that the project was approved by the countries of the world with the exception of Israel. 'This project is so far the only project which is capable of solving the existing problems between the Palestinians and the Israelis. He urged the Palestinians to close their ranks and to shoulder their responsibility towards the service of their religion and homeland. Prince Sultan slammed the reports which said that a meeting was recently held between Saudi and Israeli officials. 'It will be laughable when we hear that a meeting was held between a Saudi and an Israeli, then what will be the matter about the Saudi leadership', he added. He pointed out that the Saudi judicial system has been studied and the outcome of the study has been approved by the cabinet. He also said the educational curriculum in the kingdom is under study. He noted that changes in the curriculum will be in conformity with the kingdom's beliefs and the interests of its people. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz has received a telephone call from President of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas. During the conversation, developments of the Palestinian issue and situations in the region were discussed and bilateral relations between the kingdom and Palestine were reviewed. On the other hand the Qatari mediation efforts to narrow gabs between the Palestinian presidency and the Hamas Islamic group in forming a national unity government have failed. The Hamas-led government confirmed that it did not agree with Qatar on two points of its six-article initiative to settle differences, "renouncing terrorism" and two-state solution were not agreed upon. In a press conference held in Gaza City, the spokesman of the current government, Ghazi Hamad, said that the Hamas movement and the government have confirmed to the Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassem Al-Thani that they are sticking to the right of resistance against the occupation and there is difference between resistance and terror. Hamad said that Hamas told the Qatari minister they accept a state on the lands of 1967 as presented in the National Accordance document. Yasser Abed Rabbo, a senior aide to President Mahmoud Abbas, said "the differences on the core issues have remained and in the light of tonight's talks it does not seen as if we are closer to an agreement." He told reporters that, "This initiative (the Qatari) is the last political effort that is being exerted and the now the alternative is to hold early elections." The key obstacles to the formation of a unity government have been Hamas' refusal to participate in any government committed to the Quartet principles, including recognizing Israel's right to exist, renouncing violence and acknowledgment of previous agreement by PLO. Abbas held two meetings with Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani on Monday night, the second of which spilled over into the early hours of Tuesday morning. Sheikh Hamad held back-to-back talks with Abbas and Haniyeh in the Gaza Strip after meeting earlier in the day with Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in Damascus. According to Abed Rabbo, the talks failed because Hamas continued to refuse the previous commitment of the PLO. "We will continue the dialogue over these points but no agenda for a unity government can succeed unless these points are resolved," he said. Abbas said the Qatari mediation effort would continue, but Sheikh Hamad left the Gaza early on Tuesday and it was not clear if or when he would return. Abed Rabbo warned that failure of the Qatari mediation would probably force early Palestinian elections. "This initiative is the last political effort that is being exerted and the opportunity must be seized because the alternative is to hold early elections," he said. Palestinian politicians said the Qatari proposals included forming a government of so-called technocrats and convening a meeting between Abbas and Meshaal, whose Hamas movement won Palestinian elections in January. Fifteen people have been killed in clashes between Hamas and Fatah since talks on a coalition government foundered, the worst internal violence in Gaza and the West Bank. Abbas aides said Meshaal provided Sheikh Hamad with a counter-proposal by Hamas, the details of which were not disclosed. "Abbas was furious and rejected the Hamas paper," a senior Abbas aide said. Hamas officials say any agreement has to be based on the so-called "Prisoners' Document," penned by Palestinians in Israeli jails, that Hamas agreed to in June after amendments. The document calls for negotiations with Israel if Israel withdraws from land it has occupied since 1967, resistance focused on peaceful means and a unity government. But Hamad, the Hamas-government spokesman, refused all the statements, which said that the talks with Qatari foreign minister failed and negotiations reached a deadlock, "the Qatari mediation is still ongoing and the minister is interested in promoting the idea of a national unity government." Sheikh Hamad's visit to Gaza comes at sensitive and tense time as Hamas and Fatah supporters battle each other on the streets that have resulted in the death of 15 people in the deadliest fighting over the past week. Also Nabil Amro, media adviser to Abbas, announced that the Qatari initiative has officially and formally failed, he told reporters in the West Bank city Ramallah. Ghazi Hamad said his group has reservations about Qatar's proposal for a new Palestinian national unity government that would recognize Israel's right to exist. He also said his group is not ready to give up its armed struggle against Israel. "We differentiate between resistance and terrorism," he said. "The gap remains wide between Hamas and the international demands for forming a national unity government, and overcoming those obstacles will be difficult," Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina had said during the night. Amid the stalled talks, Abbas' entourage warned that the Palestinian leader could dissolve the present government and call early elections if the deadlock remained. Qatari mediation "is the last political proposition. If there is failure, the solution will be early elections," said Yasser Abed Rabbo, a member of the executive committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization. Abbas arrived in Gaza City, the seat of the Hamas-led government, in the early afternoon ahead of his expected meeting with the Qatari diplomat. The Palestinians have been gripped by unparalleled fiscal and political crisis since Islamic militant group Hamas took office last March following a massive electoral victory over the once dominant Fatah. Haniyeh says his Hamas-led government will not recognize Israel and has problems with a widely touted Arab peace plan because it does. International assistance to the Palestinians has dried up because the militant Hamas movement will not recognize Israel and renounce violence. Haniyeh, addressing an "iftar" feast at the end of a day of Ramadan fasting, said Hamas and the government "will not recognize or normalize" relations with Israel. He also said the main problem with the Arab peace plan, presented in 2002 by Saudi Arabia and endorsed by an Arab summit, is that it recognizes Israel in exchange for an Israeli pullout from the West Bank, Gaza Strip, east Jerusalem and Golan Heights. Haniyeh said he still hopes for a unity government with Fatah. After Hamas refused to recognize Israel, renounce violence or abide by past peace agreements, the West suspended direct aid, sending the economy into freefall and seeing no civil servants receive full salaries for six months. Stalemate in talks on forming a unity government acceptable to the West has persisted as spiralling inter-faction tensions spilled over into deadly clashes that have left at least 12 people dead over the past week. The United States and Europe have insisted that any Palestinian government must accept three basic conditions before the West resumes its aid: recognition of Israel, renunciation of violence and acceptance of previous Israeli-Palestinian peace deals. Jordan's foreign minister warned that Palestinians face "a humanitarian tragedy" unless peacemaking with Israel resumes quickly. "It is absolutely necessary to consolidate international efforts to provide assistance to the needy Palestinian people," Abdul-Ilah Al-Khatib told visiting UN Middle East envoy Alvaro De Soto in Amman, the Jordanian capital. Meanwhile, a secret meting that included aides of the President, Mahmoud Abbas, and aides of the Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, was conducted two days ago in Jerusalem, according to the daily Palestinian newspaper, Al-Quds. The Palestinian team included Rafiq Al Husseini, the advisor of the Palestinian President, and Palestinian chief negotiator, Dr. Saeb Erekat. The Israeli team included Noram Nrobovitch and Shalom Turjman. Al-Quds reported that the top secret meeting was meant to prepare for a possible meeting between Abbas and Olmert Palestinian sources reported that the Israeli side insisted that the captured Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, should be freed before talks would resume. Israel believes that the soldier, captured by three Palestinian factions since June 25, is being held in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli team said that any progress in talks with the Palestinians is dependant on the safe release of the soldier. The Palestinian team said that president Abbas is conducting utmost efforts to release the soldier in exchange for a prisoner swap deal. The Palestinian team demanded that Israel lift the siege impose on the Palestinian territories, and transfer the tax revenues Israel had been holding since several months. The amount of tax revenue Israel is holding is estimated by 600 Million US Dollars. From his side David Walsh US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs said that Hamas is obstructing the renewal of the peace talks through its refusal to abide to the principles of international resolutions. He also added that Israel should show its good will. In London at Chatham House, Chancellor Gordon Brown declared that there will be "no hiding place" for people who fund terrorism as he unveiled new measures to tackle the extremist threat. Secret intelligence will be used for the first time to freeze suspect assets, target "dubious" charities, and tougher rules imposed on bureaux de change, he said. Mr Brown announced the Treasury crackdown in a speech to Chatham House. Still the favourite to become Prime Minister within the year - he complained that the "cultural" battle against al Qaida's ideology had been "undervalued" in recent years and pledged to visit the Middle East in a bid to help the peace process. But he also attacked anti-American sentiment, insisting values on both sides of the Atlantic were "as one" in confronting extremism. "Our aim is simple: just as no safe haven should exist for terrorists, no hiding place should exist for those that finance terrorism," he told the meeting of Chatham House. He added: "We cannot now risk waiting for someone to commit an act. Indeed it would be a failure of our duty to protect people to do so." The use of such evidence would be subject to hearings by a Special Advocate who would also report quarterly to Parliament on the system's operation, the Chancellor said. New powers will also be sought to allow the Treasury to stop funds reaching anyone in the UK suspected of planning terror or being involved with any plots. Mr Brown said the use of "forensic accounting" had helped track down and freeze more than 200 UK accounts with suspected linked to al Qaida since September 11. An alleged terrorist had also been tracked down to an overseas bomb factory, he revealed. Mr Brown said there would be a review of the entire charitable sector to "root out" those organisations which were being exploited by terrorists... At the same time, it was important to tackle the "roots of terrorism" - most urgently by getting the Middle East peace process back on track. Mr Brown said he would be making further visits to the region to offer assistance in addressing the economic problems of poverty and unemployment. "What we confront is not a conventional fight, and therefore cannot be won by conventional methods," he said. On the Iraqi arena the OIC has issued the following press release: Through an initiative of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), a preparatory meeting to formulate a document on reconciliation between Iraqi Sunnis and Shiites was held at the headquarters of the International Islamic Fiqh Academy, Jeddah, on Saturday and Sunday 15 and 16 Ramadan 1427H (7 and 8 October 2006). Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, who chaired the meeting, said in his address that the Organization saw the necessity of taking an initiative aimed at stopping the turmoil in Iraq out of consciousness of its responsibility before Allah, the Islamic Ummah and history, and in order to prevent the shedding of Muslim blood and to eradicate disorder in Iraq. Furthermore, he stated that the same reasons informed the request to religious scholars and the highest religious authorities in Iraq to embark on their duties of stopping bloodshed in their country by emphasizing that, on the basis of the provisions of the Holy Qur'an, the traditions of the Prophet and the tolerant principles Islam, the blood of a Muslim is sacred. Once adopted, the document will be a call to every Iraqi stating the clear position of Islam on the prohibition of shedding a Muslim's blood. It will also call on Iraqi Muslims to abide by the clear principles of Islam in this regard. The Iraqi delegation that represented Sunni and Shiite religious scholars comprised: Sheikh Jalaludeen Al Saghir, Sheikh Dr Salah Abdul Razaq, Sheikh Abdul Satar Abdul Jabbar Abbas and Sheikh Dr Mahmoud Al Samidai. Also at the meeting were Sheikh Muhammad Habib Ben El-Khoja, Secretary General of the International Islamic Fiqh Academy, Sheikh Muhammad Ali Al-Taskhiri, Member of the Islamic Fiqh Academy and Dr Muhammad Salim El Awa, Adviser to the Secretary General. The meeting agreed on the draft of the said document, entitled "Makkah Al Mukarramah Document" which will be proclaimed in Makkah Al Mukarammah during the blessed month of Ramadan at a meeting to be held on 27 and 28 Ramadan 1427H (19 and 20 October 2006) with the participation of senior Muslim scholars and authorities in Iraq. On the other hand on her way back from the Middle East Secretary Rice said: I've really enjoyed this trip to the Middle East because I wanted to come out in the post-Lebanon period and get a real sense for what people were thinking. I had an extensive conversation with King Abdullah. I had extensive discussions with the GCC plus Egypt and Jordan. I had a chance to sit face to face with Mahmoud Abbas and understand better what he thinks his options are for dealing with the political crisis that the Palestinians are facing. I had a chance to talk to people in Iraq and also to the Israelis. So I think I have a much better sense of how the Lebanese events and this period are affecting people's calculations of what needs to be done. Clearly, there are extremists forces out there that need to be challenged and they're going to have to be challenged. But you challenge those forces by having a positive agenda in the Middle East and I think I have a much better sense of how these various allies, friends, partners think about what needs to constitute that positive agenda. And I'm going to go back for extensive discussions with the President and with the other -- and with the national security principals because this is an absolutely crucial time in the Middle East, and I heard in every single place this isn't a time to stand still in terms of a policy in the Middle East. Everybody understands that a lot is changing in the Middle East and that we need to have a positive agenda. But it's not just a positive agenda for the United States. It's a positive agenda for all of these forces that want to have a positive effect on the Middle East. So that's what I did while I was out here. Secretary Rice also said that her meetings with Mr. Barzani "were very good meetings. We had a chance to talk about some of the issues of national reconciliation, including obviously the hydrocarbons law and federalism issues. I always find him a very interesting and good interlocutor, and he is someone who is involved in the Iraqi political circles but from a different perspective obviously from the Kurdish regions. So they were very good meetings and I think very well worth doing." In Washington President George W Bush said the situation is difficult in Iraq, no question about it. The violence is being caused by a combination of terrorists, elements of former regime criminals and sectarian militias. Attacks and casualties have risen during the Ramadan period. A rise in violence has occurred every Ramadan period in the last three years. Attacks and casualties have also increased recently because our forces are confronting the enemy in Baghdad and in other parts of Iraq. The past weekend, U.S. and Iraqi forces engaged militias -- or members of an illegal militia -- during a mission to capture a high-value target. The reason I bring this up is that we're on the move. We're taking action. We're helping this young democracy succeed. The reasons we went after the illegal militia was to capture a man responsible for killing many innocent Iraqis, and we accomplished that mission. Our troops have increased their presence on the streets of Baghdad, and together with Iraqi forces, they're working to ensure that terrorists and death squads cannot intimidate the local population and operate murder ringsBy helping the Iraqis build a democracy -- an Iraqi-style democracy -- we will deal a major blow to terrorists and extremists, we'll bring hope to a troubled region, and we'll make this country more secure. In Riyadh Deputy Interior Minister Prince Ahmed Ibn Abdul Aziz confirmed reports that Saudi Arabia was erecting a fence to prevent intrusion along its entire 560-km border with Iraq. "Such a fence is essential to prevent the spillover of violence," the minister said, adding that there was an understanding with the Iraqi Interior Ministry on this matter. The barrier, which likely will take five to six years to complete, is part of a $12 billion package of measures, including electronic sensors, bases and physical barriers, to protect the Kingdom from external threats, said Nawaf Obaid, head of the Saudi National Security Assessment Project, an independent research institute that provides security advice to the Saudi government. US and Iraqi officials have long complained about Saudi extremists crossing into Iraq -- mostly through Syria -- to join the battle against American and coalition forces. However, Obaid said improvements in border surveillance had sharply reduced the traffic going north. He said the Saudi government was more concerned -- at this point -- with infiltration into its territory from Iraq. "More importantly, the main issue is to seal the border on the Iraqi side since there has been almost no [Iraqi security] presence since the US invasion," Obaid said. In addition to political extremists, Saudi Arabia wants to prevent drug smugglers, weapons dealers and illegal migrants from using Iraq as an avenue into the Kingdom Obaid said. He said contracts for work on the fence, expected to cost about $500 million, have not been awarded and work is not expected to begin before next year. It is unclear whether the Saudis will build a fence across the entire Iraqi border -- virtually all barren desert -- or simply at key crossing points. Although the government in Riyadh has not released complete details of its plans, security experts familiar with the project said it would include electronic sensors and ultraviolet cameras capable of detecting any attempt to breach the fence. The Middle East Economic Digest, a regional news magazine, reported this month that it would contain a double-lined fence with 135 electronically controlled gates, fence-mounted ultraviolet intruder detection sensors, buried radio detection sensors and concertina razor wire along the entire, mostly desert, frontier. On another development North Korea faced a barrage of global condemnation and calls for harsh sanctions after it announced that it had set off an atomic weapon underground, a test that thrusts the secretive communist state into the elite club of nuclear-armed nations. The explosion prompted worldwide concern it could seriously destabilize the region, and even Pyongyang's ally China said it strongly opposed the move. South Korea's spy chief said there were possible indications the North was moving to conduct more tests. The United States called for immediate UN Security Council action and, along with Japan, was expected to press for more sanctions on the impoverished North. In Washington, US President George W. Bush branded the nuclear test, in defiance of a Security Council resolution adopted only last Friday, "a threat to international peace and security" and pressed for an immediate response from the Council. After an emergency session on the crisis, the 15-member Council "strongly condemned" Pyongyang's action and vowed a "strong and swift" response, its president said. Japan's UN envoy Kenzo Oshima, the Council president for October, told reporters that the Council also urged North Korea "to refrain from further testing" and return to six-nation disarmament talks. Council members were meeting to fine-tune a draft resolution circulated by the United States to respond to Pyongyang's defiance. Oshima said members wanted "to find appropriate measures in order to respond to this act of DPRK which poses a threat to peace and security in the region and beyond." Earlier his US counterpart John Bolton said that Washington sought action under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, setting in motion a process that could lead to sanctions or even military action. There were conflicting reports on the size of the blast. South Korea said it was relatively small, while Russia said it had been perhaps as powerful as the nuclear bombs the US dropped on Japan during World War II. The North's official Korean Central News Agency said the underground test was performed successfully "with indigenous wisdom and technology 100 percent," and that no radiation leaked from the test site. "It marks a historic event as it greatly encouraged and pleased the (Korean People's Army) and people that have wished to have powerful self-reliant defense capability," KCNA said, adding that it was "a great leap forward in the building of a great prosperous powerful socialist nation." If details of the test are confirmed, North Korea would be the ninth country known to have nuclear weapons, along with the United States, Russia, France, China, Britain, India, Pakistan and Israel. A nuclear North Korea would dramatically alter the strategic balance of power in the Pacific region and seriously undermine global anti-proliferation efforts. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the test would mark the beginning of a "dangerous nuclear age" in north Asia. Australia and South Korea said there was seismic confirmation that pointed to a nuclear test, and a top Russian military officer confirmed the device tested was a nuclear weapon, the Itar-Tass news agency reported. However, Japan and the United States said they couldn't immediately confirm a nuclear test. South Korea's seismic monitoring center said a magnitude 3.6 tremor felt at the time of the nuclear test was not a natural occurrence. The size of the tremor could indicate an explosive equivalent to 550 tons of TNT, said Park Chang-soo, spokesman at the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources which would be far smaller than the nuclear bombs the US dropped on Japan in World War II. But in televised comments, Russia's Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said that the force of the blast was between five and 15 kilotons. Intelligence officials told South Korea's Parliament the test appeared to have been carried out in a 360-meter-high mountain tunnel northwest of the Musudan missile base in the Hwadaeri region, according to lawmaker Chung Hyong-keun. He quoted an intelligence official as saying: "In consideration of the height of the mountain, the test appeared to have been done in a horizontal tunnel." Iranian state radio blamed Pyongyang's nuclear test on US pressure, saying the test "was a reaction to America's threats and humiliation." Iran has said it will not abandon uranium enrichment, despite the threat of international sanctions over its disputed nuclear program, which Tehran insists is purely for peaceful purposes to be used for nuclear energy. The Arab League called for a return to political negotiations. Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa called for "speedy return to political negotiations with regards the North Korean nuclear file in order to contain the situation." "The world does not need any more nuclear tests and does not need more tension," Moussa said. Pakistan's Foreign Ministry criticized North Korea, saying its test could spark a proliferation "chain reaction." "It is regrettable that the DPRK chose to ignore the advice of the international community not to test a nuclear weapon," ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam told a news conference in Islamabad. "Pakistan deplores the announcement by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea that it has conducted a nuclear test," Aslam said. "This will be a destabilizing development for the region." Aslam said the North Korean test was not linked to Pakistani nuclear technology that was delivered to the Pyongyang regime by disgraced Pakistani nuclear program founder Abdul Qadeer Khan. "There is absolutely no link between the nuclear test conducted by North Korea or what might have gone on between Dr. A.Q. Khan and the North Korean government," Aslam said. "The North Korean program is plutonium-based and Pakistan's is mainly uranium based." North Korean officials warned their nation could fire a nuclear-tipped missile if the US spurns dialogue on Pyongyang's terms in the wake of the country's atomic test, South Korean media reported. "We hope the situation will be resolved before an unfortunate incident of us firing a nuclear missile comes," an unnamed North Korean official said, according to a Yonhap news agency report from Beijing. "That depends on how the US will act." The first North Korean official, who spoke with Yonhap, also indicated that the North wants direct talks with the US, saying that the test is an "expression of our intention to face the United States across the negotiating table." The test strained the North's relations with its main ally China, with Beijing swiftly denouncing Pyongyang. China's UN ambassador, Wang Guangya, told reporters: "I think that there has to be some punitive actions." He added: "We need to have a firm, constructive, appropriate but prudent response to North Korea's nuclear threat." In Moscow, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov called the reported test a "colossal blow" to the non-proliferation regime but, like China, insisted an eventual United Nations resolution on this issue should not involve the use of force. "For us that is very important... imagine if there was military action on the territory of North Korea... North Korea has borders with three countries, and one of them is Russia," he told reporters. The United States, France and Britain, the other Council permanent members, agreed that tough measures were needed fast. But no vote has been scheduled. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged that Japan, the only nation to suffer an atomic attack, would not be provoked into developing nuclear weapons. Abe, a conservative who supports a stronger role for Japan's military, rejected speculation that the North Korean announcement would trigger a regional arms race. Iran pinned the blame for North Korea's nuclear test on the refusal of world powers to abandon their atomic weapons and the country's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the country would pursue its right to develop nuclear technology. "The major powers feel that they are entitled to use and produce nuclear weapons," government spokesman Gholam Hossein Elham told reporters in Tehran. "This injustice, inequality and discrimination in international law has resulted in such threats to world peace" as the North Korean test, he added. State television quoted Khamenei as saying at a meeting of high-ranking government officials: "Our policy is clear: progress with clear logic and insisting on the nation's right without any retreat."