ARIRANG NEWS 18:00
Hello... it′s Saturday the fourteenth of March... you are tuned in to our SIX PM newscast coming to you from Arirang′s News Center in Seoul.
Thnaks for joining us,... I′m Mark Broome.
U.S., China offer different responses to N. Korea′s missile firing
We start with North Korea′s latest provocation and the international response to it...
Needless to say,... the United States has condemned Pyongyang for its test-firing of several missiles into the East Sea.
China,... on the other hand,.. took a softer stance and called for everyone to play their part to cool tensions.
Ji Myung-kil reports.
The United States was quick to respond to North Korea′s latest provocation.
It demanded Pyongyang refrain from such missile launches,... calling them irresponsible actions that aggravate tensions.
Washington also stressed that North Korea should start fulfilling its legal obligations to the international community.
In a briefing on Friday, local time, Pentagon spokesman Steve Warren said the U.S. continues to closely monitor the security situation on the Korean peninsula.
Issuing its own response,... China called for all sides to show calm... saying all the relevant parties could be doing more to ease tensions and increase peace and stability in the region.
The statements came after North Korea fired seven surface-to-air missiles into the East Sea.
Experts say the firings were an expression of Pyongyang′s opposition to the ongoing annual joint military exercises between South Korea and the U.S.
North Korea sees the drills as a show of aggression,... but Seoul and Washington have repeatedly stressed the exercises are purely defensive.
The North′s latest provocation came shortly after it was announced that North Korea and Russia have declared 2015 as their year of friendship.
The countries plan to hold a series of political, economic and cultural exchanges this year to take their bilateral ties to the next level.
The Kremlin has already confirmed that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will travel to Moscow in May to attend a ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of the Soviet Union′s victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two.
Ji Myung-kil, Arirang News.
U.S. experts urge Washington to be proactive in improving Korea-Japan ties
Some renowned U.S. experts on Northeast Asia are calling on the United States to be more proactive in encouraging Korea and Japan to get along with each other.
Speaking at the American Enterprise Institute forum on Korea-Japan relations,... former assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, Kurt Campbell said Washington should put the same emphasis on tackling the issue as it does on the Iranian nuclear and Israeli-Palestinian issues.
He stressed that, if Korea and Japan,... who he called America′s "closest friends,"... can smooth over their historical and territorial disputes,... all three countries will be able to accomplish a lot more together.
Another speaker,...

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