U.S. condemns N. Korean missile launch, urges Pyongyang to refrain from further provocations

By Byun Duk-kun

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29 (Yonhap) -- The United States on Saturday condemned North Korea's latest missile launch as a clear violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions, urging Pyongyang to refrain from further provocations.

"The United States condemns the DPRK's ballistic missile launch," a State Department spokesperson told Yonhap News Agency, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

"Like the DPRK's recent series of ballistic missile tests, this launch is a clear violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions, and demonstrates the threat the DPRK's unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs pose to the DPRK's neighbors and the region as a whole," the spokesperson added, asking not to be identified.

The remarks come hours after North Korea fired what Seoul said appeared to be a medium-range ballistic missile.

The latest missile launch marked the seventh of its kind since the start of this year.

If confirmed, however, it would mark the first time in more than four years that the North has fired a medium-range ballistic missile.

Pyongyang has maintained a self-imposed moratorium on nuclear and long-range ballistic missile testing since November 2017, despite leader Kim Jong-un saying in 2019 that he no longer felt bound by such restrictions.

North Korea earlier this month said it may consider restarting "all temporarily-suspended activities," possibly suggesting a resumption of its nuclear and long-range missile testing.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in earlier said if the North has in fact fired an intermediate range missile, the North can be considered to have "moved closer to scrapping the moratorium."

The State Department spokesperson urged North Korea to engage in dialogue.

"We stand with the international community to call on the DPRK to refrain from further provocations and engage in sustained and substantive dialogue," the spokesperson said. "Our commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea and Japan remains ironclad."

bdk@yna.co.kr
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