UN, November 29. /TASS/. The UN Secretariat remains concerned about missile tests, carried out by North Korea in breach of UN Security Council resolutions, the UN Secretary General’s Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq told TASS on Tuesday.
"Nothing specific to say at this time…, but you’re aware of the concerns we’ve expressed during previous missile tests, and they apply in this case, as well," he said.
Other international organizations also expressed their concerns about the test that took place at 03:17 local time Wednesday (21:17 Moscow time on Tuesday).
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg strongly condemned the test, which he described as "a further breach of multiple UN Security Council Resolutions, undermining regional and international security."
He called on North Korea "to refrain from further provocations, and abandon its nuclear and missile programs." "North Korea needs to re-engage in a credible and meaningful dialogue with the international community," he said.
Austria's Foreign Minister Kurz, the incumbent chairperson-in-office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said Pyongyang’s missile test violated the international law and undermined global security.
"[I] condemn today's DPRK missile test in the strongest terms; continuing violations of international law and provocations threaten global security and regional stability," he said in a Twitter message.
A spokesperson for the EU External Action Service said in a statement that "the DPRK must abandon its nuclear, weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programmes in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner, immediately cease all related activities and return to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the IAEA Safeguards."
"The EU sanctions' regime towards the DPRK is currently the most restrictive in operation," the statement reads.
According to South Korea’s Korea Joint Chiefs of Staff, Tuesday’s launch was carried out from the South Pyongan Province toward the Sea of Japan. The missile flew eastward, covering the distance of 960 km, at the altitude of up to 4,500 km.
The launch was North Korea’s first after a 75-day pause. UN Security Council resolutions prohibit Pyongyang from carrying out any activities related to the development of nuclear weapons and vehicles for their delivery. Pyongyang does not recognize those documents, citing the right to defend itself against the background of the current hostile policies by Washington.
In July, North Korea made two test launches of ballistic missiles. On August 29 and September 15, it launched two missiles which flew over Japan and on September 3 it announced a successful test of a hydrogen bomb.