INDIAN RESPONSE TO NORTH KOREAN TAEPO-DONG 2

C O N F I D E N T I A L NEW DELHI 000674 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/06/2019 TAGS: PREL PARM KNNP KN IN SUBJECT: INDIAN RESPONSE TO NORTH KOREAN TAEPO-DONG 2 LAUNCH: CONCERN, BUT NOT CLEAR CUT CONDEMNATION REF: STATE 33031 Classified By: PolCouns Ted Osius for Reasons 1.4 (B, D) ¶1. (C) During his introductory April 6 meetings at the Foreign Ministry, Charge Burleigh delivered reftel points to Indian Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon and Joint Secretary Gaitri Kumar (Americas),providing both officials with copies of the White House statement. The Charge urged the GoI to issue a more definitive condemnation of the missile launch, which he characterized as a violation of UN Security Council resolutions. Menon stated that India wants to understand what impact the launch will have on Six-Party Talks. Charge offered to seek answers to any factual questions the GOI wishes to pose. ¶2. (U) Post notes that the Indian media has given significant coverage of the missile launch, noting the dilemma for Indian policymakers. On the one hand, Indian officials readily condemn North Korea's proliferation record -- and particularly its links to Pakistan. As Foreign Ministry Mukherjee was quoted as saying, India is "totally in agreement that those who were signatories to the NPT must fulfill their obligations." However, India has consistently maintained that because it never signed the NPT, it is not bound to its "discriminatory" requirements. Noting the DPRK's withdrawal from the NPT, India has refused to take a clear stand on North Korea's responsibilities. India's own experience with UNSC Resolution 1172, which called on Delhi and Islamabad to cease development of ballistic missile capabilities for delivering nuclear weapons in the wake of the 1998 nuclear tests, has led it to reject such resolutions for being prescriptive and an infringement on sovereignty -- not unlike Pyongyang's current claims. The left-leaning Hindu newspaper described UNSCR 1172 as an "over-reach" of the Security Council. ¶3. (U) Reflecting the balancing act Delhi is trying to carry out, the External Affairs Ministry's official spokesperson on April 6, in response to a question, stated "While it is for the Security Council to come to a conclusion on the nature of the event and its relationship to its earlier resolutions, we hope that responses by all concerned will be restrained and proportionate." BURLEIGH