The UN Security Council on Monday condemned North Korea over its latest missile launch, warning of further sanctions.

In a statement adopted unanimously, the 15-member council urged the communist nation to show “sincere commitment to denuclearization through concrete action.”

“To that end, the Security Council demanded the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea conduct no further nuclear and ballistic missile tests,” the council said, using the official name for the North.


The council also plans to convene an emergency session Tuesday to discuss the North Korea issue at the request of the US and Japan.

The North is banned from testing missiles using ballistic technology under multiple UNSC resolutions that have been adopted since 2006. However, Pyongyang conducted two nuclear tests and launched numerous missiles last year, prompting the UNSC to adopt two resolutions for each of the nuclear tests.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry welcomed the latest UNSC statement as a “swift” and “resolute” response to the North’s provocations, saying that it would prepare to discuss countermeasures at the upcoming emergency session of the council.

The latest warning from the UN follows North Korea’s missile launch Sunday. The missile fell into the East Sea after covering 787 kilometers and reaching an altitude of over 2,000 kilometers. Pyongyang claimed that the missile was a capable of carrying a 1-ton nuclear warhead and threatened the US, saying that its military was now capable of striking the US mainland.

The South Korean and US militaries, however, said that the missile was unlikely to be an intercontinental ballistic missile. Shortly after the launch, the US Pacific Command said that the missile’s flight pattern was inconsistent with an ICBM.

Seoul’s Ministry of National Defense backed the assessment Tuesday, saying that the missile’s capabilities fall short of an ICBM.

“The missile is assessed to be an intermediate-range ballistic missile with improved capabilities compared to the Musudan missile,” the Defense Ministry briefed the National Assembly.

Pyongyang’s latest provocation prompted Washington to call for tighter sanctions.

“We call on the DPRK to refrain from provocative, destabilizing actions and rhetoric, and to make the strategic choice to fulfill its international obligations and commitments,” State Department spokeswoman Katina Adams said. She declined to comment on whether the North is capable of striking continental US.

Meanwhile, the White House called for tougher sanctions on the North.

“There is no question that North Korea continues to threaten the United States, our allies Japan, South Korea and its neighbors, including both China and Russia,” press secretary Sean Spicer said.

“We are calling on all those folks in the region, particularly China and Russia, to do everything they can in terms of sanctions and to help resolve the situation and bring stability to the peninsula.”

Asked if the US would advise the government of South Korea’s new President Moon Jae-in against reaching out to the North, Spicer only said that Trump “looks forward to having a conversation with the new president and discussing the way forward.”

From news reports (khnews@heraldcorp.com)