By IANS
Islamabad : Japan has asked Pakistan to end its cooperation with North Korea on missile technology, even as the latter Thursday test-fired its Hataf-VII missile reportedly developed with North Korean help.
At a Consultation on Disarmament and Non-Proliferation held here Wednesday, Japan "insisted on Pakistan's full compliance with the UN resolution 1718, which bars North Korea from conducting any further nuclear test or launching a ballistic missile", the Daily Times reported.
There was no official word from the Pakistani side about the meeting.
Pakistan has denied any North Korean hand in the development of its missile programme.
Quoting a Japanese Embassy press release issued at the end of the consultations, the newspaper said: "The Japanese side called (Pakistan) for refraining from its cooperation and transaction missile related technology with North Korea."
It also said that a Japanese delegation had expressed its expectations for Pakistan's complete observance of UN Security Council Resolution 1718.
"The Pakistani side agreed on the importance of its observance," the Japanese statement said.
While conveying its concern over Pakistan's nuclear and missile development programme in term of non-proliferation, the Japanese side also requested Pakistan to sign and ratify the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as a non-nuclear state.
Pakistan was asked to sign and ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and declare a moratorium on producing weapon grade fissile materials.
The Japanese side was led by Director General Disarmament, Non Proliferation and Science Department Takeshi Nakane while the Pakistani team was headed by Khalilullah Kazi, director general disarmament at the ministry of foreign affairs.