G8 turns screw on North Korea, Iran and Israel

HUNTSVILLE - The leaders of the world’s eight most powerful developed states turned the screw on North Korea, Iran and Israel Saturday as they concluded a two-day meeting in Canada.

The Group of Eight (G8) includes four of the five veto-holders on the United Nations Security Council and the world’s most powerful military states, making it a key commentator on security issues.

“The governments of Iran and North Korea have chosen to acquire weapons to threaten their neighbours. The world must see to it that what they paid for the weapons will not be the only cost that they will incur,” Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said.

Tensions flared on the Korean Peninsula in March when a South Korean warship was sunk by an explosion and an international investigation later found that the North had torpedoed the ship.

The investigation “concluded that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea was responsible for the sinking of the Cheonan. We condemn, in this context, the attack,” G8 leaders said in a joint declaration.

The text watered down an earlier draft which said explicitly that the North had sunk the Cheonan, without justifying the claim on the basis of the international investigation.

G8 leaders are to meet their Chinese counterparts later Saturday in Toronto in the larger Group of 20 (G20). China is North Korea’s main ally.

“All the G8 members wanted to convince our Chinese friends to be as severe as we are on North Korea and to show as much solidarity with the South as we do,” French President Nicolas Sarkozy said.

Middle East tensions, meanwhile, rose May 31 when Israeli commandos stormed a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, killing nine people. The move provoked widespread anger and led to a slew of calls for Israel to end its four-year blockade of Gaza.

Under pressure, the Israeli government Sunday promised to loosen its blockade, without lifting it completely.

G8 leaders “welcome” the promise and “urge full and effective implementation” of the new policy, the statement said.

“The current arrangements are not sustainable and must be changed,” it insisted.

The text strengthened the terms of a draft declaration which had called for Gazans to be given access to humanitarian aid and building materials, demanding that commercial goods and people also be allowed into the strip.

But it refrained from criticising the May 31 flotilla raid, with leaders saying that they “deeply regret” the bloodshed and “welcome” the fact that Israel has set up an investigative commission, including two international members.

G8 leaders also said they were “profoundly concerned” by Iran’s nuclear programme and urged all countries to back a new round of sanctions which the UN approved June 9.

Iran has displayed a “continued lack of transparency regarding its nuclear activities and its stated intention to continue and expand enriching uranium,” the final communique said.

After the UN decision, the US and European Union also unilaterally imposed additional sanctions on the Islamic regime, but China and Russia have been more reluctant to back the push for extra moves.

The G8 statement called on members to “fully” implement the UN sanctions but did not call for additional measures. Sarkozy said G8 members would have to ensure that their companies were no longer working with Iran.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Iran had been offered “a clear choice - advance its own security and prosperity by living up to its obligations, or face growing consequences and deeper isolation”.

The G8 leaders failed to renew a 10-year, $20-billion partnership on securing dangerous nuclear stockpiles around the world, which expires in 2012. The renewal was pushed by the US, and had been touted by Canada as a key product of the summit.

Instead, the bloc called for country experts to evaluate the success of initiative, which has mainly worked to secure the nuclear stockpile of the former Soviet Union. The delay disappointed nuclear experts, who fear this could stall financing beyond 2012.

The G8 members are Britain, Canada, the EU, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States. Their next summit is scheduled for the spring of 2011 in France.