Seoul pushes North Korea's bid to join ADB

FUKUOKA -- South Korea on May 12 called on other members of the Asian Development Bank to join it in supporting North Korea's bid to become a member.

Kang Kyong Shik, South Korea's deputy prime minister and finance minister, said in his presentation to ADB governors at their annual meeting, currently under way in Fukuoka, that North Korea would benefit from membership in the development institution. "North Korea suffers from chronic shortages of food and material. The ADB membership would improve North Korea's ability to deal with this precarious situation," he said.

"More importantly, by becoming a member of the international community, North Korea would end its isolation," Kang continued, noting that this in itself would be a major contribution to the political and economic stability of Asia. But Japan, which is the ADB's top donor along with the United States, has maintained a cautious stance toward allowing Pyongyang membership, and ADB officials said that discussion concerning membership could take months, since all 56 current members need to support the bid.