S.Korea, Japan say N.Korea test threatens region peace

GENEVA (Reuters) - South Korea and Japan said on Tuesday that North Korea's latest nuclear test poses a serious threat to regional peace as well as to international efforts to stem the spread of atomic weapons.

South Korean disarmament ambassador Im Han-tauck, speaking to the United Nations-sponsored Conference on Disarmament a day after the underground blast, asked the international community to send a "clear and strong message" to Pyongyang.

"The DPRK's nuclear test not only poses a serious threat to peace and stability on the Korean peninsula, and southeast Asia and beyond, but also represents a grave challenge to the international non-proliferation regime," Im said.

Japan's ambassador Sumio Tarui, as well as envoys from Australia, New Zealand and Russia echoed concerns in speeches to the 65-member forum in Geneva.

Tarui said that the test constituted a "grave threat" to Japan's security and seriously undermined peace and security in the region and world. It violated Security Council resolution 1718 of October 2006 and constituted a "grave challenge to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime."

Russian ambassador Valery Loshchinin warned that North Korea's latest tests "will lead to an escalation of tension in eastern Asia." It also undermined the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) banning underground nuclear explosions.

He urged Pyongyang to pursue a "policy of diplomacy" instead, saying the nuclear problem on the divided peninsula could be resolved only through six-party talks linking both Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States.

U.S. charge d'affaires Garold Larson was one of the few speakers at Tuesday's session not to refer to North Korea.

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Richard Balmforth)