The U.N. Security Council
has issued a statement strongly condemning North Korea’s rocket launch
and pledging to “expeditiously” adopt a new resolution with
“significant” new sanctions.
The statement approved by
all 15 council members at an emergency meeting on Sunday underscored
that launches using ballistic missile technology, “even if characterized
as a satellite launch or space launch vehicle” contribute to North
Korea’s development of systems to deliver nuclear weapons.
It stressed that using ballistic missile technology is a violation of four Security Council resolutions dating back to 2006.
The
statement also expresses the council’s commitment “to continue working
toward a peaceful, diplomatic and political solution to the situation
leading to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.”