Asia-Pacific

ROK warship sinking report 'fabricated': DPRK envoy

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-06-16 16:51

UNITED NATIONS - The UN ambassador of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Tuesday rejected the investigation result released by the Republic of Korea (ROK) over the Cheonan warship sinking as "complete fabrication."

Sin Son Ho, the DPRK's permanent representative to the United Nations, answer a question at a press conference at the UN Headquarters, June 15, 2010. [Photo/Xinhua]

"The investigation result is a complete fabrication from A to Z, " Sin Son Ho, the DPRK's permanent representative to the United Nations, told a press conference at the UN Headquarters.

"As the days go by, various information and objective realities have been found enough to prove that this case is fabricated in pursuit of political purposes of the South Korean authorities," he said.

Citing an example, Sin said that the ROK had presented the rear part of a 1.5-meter-long torpedo as "material evidence" for the sinking by a DPRK torpedo.

But since the sinking of the warship, a number of US and ROK ships equipped with the state-of-the-art detective means conducted intensive search for any material evidence for over 50 days in the sinking site with no success, he said.

Then, "a fishing boat appeared all of a sudden, and claimed that it had collected a remnant of torpedo of 1.5 meters long by fishing net just five days before the release of the ' investigation result,'" Sin said. "This is indeed as funny story as some kind of fiction in the Aesop's Fables."

On March 26, the 1,200-ton ROK Navy frigate "Cheonan," with 104 crew members onboard, went down off the ROK island of Baekryeong off the west coast due to an unexplained explosion that split it into two. Forty-six sailors were killed.

Seoul said after completing investigations that the warship was torpedoed by the DPRK. But Pyongyang denied its involvement in the incident.

On June 4, the ROK delivered a letter formally requesting the Security Council to take action over the case of "Cheonan" "in a manner appropriate to the gravity of situation."

The Security Council on Monday held separate private meetings with delegations of the two countries to hear their briefings over the Cheonan case. The Council then expressed grave concern over the impact of the incident on peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, and urged the sides "to refrain from any act that could escalate tensions in the region."