US Senate on Wednesday called for the Obama administration to assess the possibilities of relisting the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) as a state sponsor of terrorism.
The Senate on Wednesday discussed two amendments dealing with the DPRK and the State Department's State Sponsors of Terrorism list on the National Defense Authorization Act.
The first amendment, which was adopted by a vote of 66-31, called on the Obama administration to submit a report within 30 days to assess the DPRK's behavior since it was removed from the State Department's State Sponsors of Terrorism list.
The assessment should include an evaluation of any evidence that the DPRK has "engaged in acts of terrorism or provided support for acts of terrorism or terrorist organizations," according to SENATUS, a website specializing in coverage of the Senate's daily activities.
"If the report finds evidence that North Korea has in fact provided support for terrorism activities, they should immediately be relisted on the State terrorism list," said the report.
Under the six-party talk's framework which characterized with "action for action", on October 11, 2008, following Pyongyang agreed to all US nuclear inspection demands, the Bush administration responded by removing the DPRK from the terrorism blacklist.
But voice asking to put the DPRK back on the list has been surging inside the United States since Pyongyang conducted an underground nuclear test on May 25 and subsequently fired at least seven ballistic missiles.
Pyongyang also boycotted the six-party talks on its nuclear program.
Responding to Pyongyang's behaviors, the Obama administration has decided to extend economic sanctions by prolonging the national emergency on the DPRK and has vowed to enforce sanctions against Pyongyang set in the 1874 UN Security Council Resolution.
(Xinhua News Agency July 23, 2009)
