TOKYO, April 17. /TASS/. North Korea condemns the United States and its allies’ plans to call a United Nations Security Council meeting on North Korea’s missile launches and notes that Washington’s nuclear threats against Pyongyang have reached a new level, Ri Pyong Chol, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, said on Monday.
"The United States and its allies are again seeking to use force to call a UN Security Council meeting to question our self-defense measures and the strengthening of our defense capabilities. I see the US is seeking to challenge our natural right to self-defense. North Koreas’ efforts to develop new strategic weapons are a legitimate measure to enhance self-defense against the growing military threat from the US," he said in a statement released by the Korean Central News Agency.
Ri Pyong Chol also condemned the United States and South Korea’s drills near the Korean Peninsula, which involved more than 100 warplanes, including a B-52H bomber. "Nuclear threats and blackmail against us have reached a level that cannot be ignored. It is quite natural for us to try to develop more powerful self-defense means in response to the aggravated situation," he noted.
On April 13, North Korea test-launched its first solid-propellant intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-18. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was personally in charge of the trials. The use of solid propellants makes it possible to shorten pre-launch preparations and store missiles ready for use.
Following the launch, Japan requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.