UN Security Council to discuss North Korea missile launches

China’s foreign ministry did not directly blame North Korea for the missile launch at a daily briefing on Monday.

The U.S., Japan and South Korea made clear after the council meeting that they want further action, but also didn’t specify what.

After the submarine-based launch, the Security Council called on United Nations member states to “redouble their efforts” to implement all United Nations sanctions imposed on the North. Seoul’s Foreign Ministry announced Tuesday that South Korea’s representative to the six-party talks, Kim Hong-kyun, and his USA counterpart Sung Kim are expected to discuss ways to counter North Korea’s threats next week during talks in Seoul.

Obama – who noted that the recent launch took place while China was hosting the G20 Summit – said the two leaders had “extensive” discussions over the incident and added the two nations are “united in condemning North Korea’s continued missile launches”.

The council gave no indication of what “further significant measures” it might take if North Korea continues conducting tests and trying to enhance its nuclear capabilities.

Power said North Korea has carried out 22 missile launches so far this year and the latest hit “within 300 kilometers of Japan’s coast”.

The military officials identified the missiles as the medium-range Rodong. Last month, it successfully tested a submarine-launched missile and development of those missiles would add a weapon that is harder to detect before launch.

“And President Park and I agree that the entire global community needs to implement these sanctions fully and hold North Korea accountable”.

Earlier, the United States called for action to enforce Security Council resolutions on North Korea prohibiting ballistic missile-related activities.

The UN Security Council is convening yet another emergency meeting on North Korea’s threats. While the regime’s nuclear and missile programs are a threat to the USA and its allies, South Korea and Japan, Kirby said the (quote) “reckless launches by North Korea threaten civil aviation and maritime commerce in the region”.

“The Security Council must remain unequivocal and united in the condemnation of these tests and we must take action to enforce the words we put on paper, to enforce our resolutions”, said USA ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, after a Security Council meeting. But they point to a mid-range ballistic missile test in June as evidence of a steadily advancing ability to reach USA forces stationed in the region.

Pyongyang appears to have successfully tested such a missile last month, much to the jubilation of Kim, as seen in photos released by North Korean state media.

During their summit in the Laotian capital of Vientiane, President Park Geun-hye and her US counterpart Barack Obama reaffirmed that the allies would mobilize “all possible means” to counter Pyongyang’s continued provocations, which they said pose a threat not only to the Korean Peninsula but also the entire region. But he didn’t mention any further council action.

“So without getting ahead of the council we were also interested in increasing the consequences after this pattern of using these launches to advance the capabilities of the program”, she said.