U.S. urges UNSC action to punish N. Korea over recent provocations

By Byun Duk-kun

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 (Yonhap) -- The United States on Friday called on the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) to hold North Korea accountable for its recent provocative actions that included the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield also stressed the importance of fully implementing the existing UNSC sanctions on the recalcitrant country.

"Over the last week and a half the DPRK has exacerbated an extremely worrisome trend that we've seen all year; an increasing number of (missile) launches in flagrant violation of the Security Council Resolution, destabilizing and threatening rhetoric and continue escalation," the U.S. diplomat said at an emergency meeting of the Security Council held in New York.

"The United States condemns, in the strongest possible terms, all 13 recent DPRK ballistic missile launches since October 27, but the DPRK's latest test of an intercontinental ballistic missile, the seventh ICBM this year, is particularly concerning," she added.

DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North Korea's official name.

Friday's UNSC meeting marked the ninth of its kind held this year to specifically discuss possible measures to hold North Korea responsible or stop its continued provocations.

The previous eight meetings, however, ended in naught, primarily due to opposition from Russia and China, both veto power-wielding permanent members of the Security Council and close neighbors of North Korea.

Thomas-Greenfield argued Beijing and Moscow have made a mockery of the Security Council by bending over backward to justify Pyongyang's repeated violations of UNSC resolutions that they had helped to put in place.

"I want to remind this council of our responsibility to protect global peace and security, defend a global nonproliferation regime and uphold the Security Council resolutions," she said.

"You don't get to abandon the Security Council responsibilities because the DPRK might sell you weapons to fuel your war of aggression in Ukraine or because you think they make a good regional butter to the United States," added the U.S. ambassador.

The U.S. earlier released intelligence information that Pyongyang is trying to "covertly" send a significant number of artillery shells to Russia for use in Ukraine.

Thomas-Greenfield said the North has now launched 59 ballistic missiles in total this year.

"For a U.N. member state to so flagrantly violate the Security Council resolutions and all that the UN Charter stands for is appalling," she said, referring to North Korea's missile launches. "Equally appalling is the council's deafening silence on this issue."

bdk@yna.co.kr
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