Tag Archives: Missile Launches

North Korea missile launches ‘extremely concerning’: France

A North Korean flag flies on a mast at the Permanent Mission of North Korea in Geneva

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Ballistic missile tests carried out by North Korea on Monday are “extremely concerning” and France favors a quick and firm reaction by the U.N. Security Council, France’s U.N. ambassador said on Tuesday.

North Korea fired three ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast on Monday, the South Korean and U.S. militaries said, as the leaders of the Group of 20 major economies held a summit in China, the North’s main diplomatic ally.

Speaking ahead of a Security Council meeting to discuss North Korea, Ambassador Francois Delattre said the launches were “a clear and unacceptable new violation of the Security Council resolutions” and a threat to regional and international peace and security.

“We very much favor a quick and firm reaction by the Security Council to this new provocation,” he said.

Koro Bessho, Japan’s U.N. ambassador, added: “We want to have a united and clear message,” without elaborating.

Monday’s missile launches were the latest in a series by North Korea this year in violation of Security Council resolutions that were supported by China and that ban all ballistic missile-related activities by Pyongyang.

North Korea rejects the ban as infringing its sovereign right to pursue a space program and self defense.

North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006. The 15-member Security Council toughened the sanctions in March in response to North Korea’s fourth nuclear test in January and the launch of a long-range rocket in February.

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Yara Bayoumy and Frances Kerry)

U.N. Security Council condemns North Korea missile launches

part of a North Korean missile washed up on Japanese beach

By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The United Nations Security Council on Thursday condemned North Korea’s most recent ballistic missile launches as a grave violation of an international ban and called on the 193 U.N. member states to enforce toughened sanctions on the Asian state.

North Korea, or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, launched what appeared to be an intermediate-range missile on Wednesday to a high altitude in the direction of Japan before it plunged into the sea about two hours after a similar test failed.

“The members of the Security Council deplore all DPRK ballistic missile activities noting that such activities contribute to the DPRK’s development of nuclear weapons delivery systems and increase tension,” the 15-member body said.

“The members of the Security Council further regretted that the DPRK is diverting resources to the pursuit of ballistic missiles while DPRK citizens have great unmet needs,” it said.

After supervising the missile launches, North Korea leader Kim Jong Un said his country now has the capability to attack U.S. interests in the Pacific, official media reported.

The U.N. Security Council met on Wednesday evening to discuss the missile launches. The statement issued on Thursday is almost identical to a condemnation by the council on June 1 over several previous ballistic missile tests by Pyongyang.

U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power signaled that the United States would seek “to identify individual, entities who may be responsible for this repeated series of tests” and could be sanctioned by the Security Council.

North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006. In March, the Security Council imposed harsh new sanctions on the country in response to North Korea’s fourth nuclear test in January and the launch of a long-range rocket in February.

Power said that since the new sanctions were imposed in March North Korea had carried out 10 ballistic missile tests.

“As DPRK continues to test these delivery systems they make progress and they learn things and thus it is extremely important that we come together and we address any hidden gaps there may be in the enforcement” of the March resolution, Power said on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)