The news under analysis was reported in the period of time after North Korea missile test on July 5th 2006. It should be noted here that there have been six-party nuclear talks which aim to find a peaceful resolution to the security concerns as a result of the North Korean nuclear weapons program. There has been a series of meetings with six participating states: the People's Republic of China; the Republic of Korea (South Korea); the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea); the United States of America; the Russian Federation; and Japan. These talks were a result of North Korea withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 2003. Five rounds of talks from 2003 to 2006 produced little net progress because of the different goals and interests of the six nations. After the missile test on July 5, the US and Japan strongly criticized North Korea and tried to persuade the United Nations to give sanctions against North Korea. Meanwhile, Russia and China - two veto-wielding Council members - opposed strong punitive actions against North Korea and they expressed concerns that punitive measures would inflame tensions in the region.
