Israel has condemned the North Korean launch of a rocket carried out Sunday, thought to be a cover for a ballistic missile test, joining the world community in blasting Pyongyang.
In a statement, the Foreign Ministry says the launch “was carried out in contravention of its relevant international obligations.”
“Israel regards North Korea’s repeated provocations with profound concern and calls on the international community to prevent any further violations, which clearly pose a threat to international peace and security,” reads the statement.
The UN Security Council on Sunday condemned North Korea’s launch of the long-range rocket that world leaders called a banned test of ballistic missile technology and another “intolerable provocation.”
This picture taken from North Korean TV and released by South Korean news agency Yonhap on February 7, 2016, shows North Korea’s rocket launch of earth observation satellite Kwangmyong 4 (AFP PHOTO / North Korean TV via YONHAP)
The UN’s most powerful body pledged to quickly adopt a new resolution with “significant” new sanctions.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un went ahead with the launch just two hours after an eight-day window opened early Sunday, and a month after the country’s fourth nuclear test.
He ignored an appeal from China, its neighbor and important ally, not to proceed, and, in another slap to Beijing, he chose the eve of the Chinese New Year, the country’s most important holiday.
— with AP
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