UN Security Council strongly condemns North Korea rocket launch

United Nations: The UN Security Council on Sunday strongly condemned North Korea's long-range rocket launch at an emergency meeting here and vowed to impose fresh sanctions in response to "these dangerous and serious violations."

The UNSC said the latest rocket launch by the North a day earlier was in violation of its previous resolutions.

Following a meeting at the UN headquarters in New York, Security Council members "strongly condemned" the launch by North Korea using ballistic missile technology.

The Security Council underscored that the launch, even if characterised as a satellite launch or space launch vehicle, contributes to North Korea's development of nuclear weapon delivery systems.

"And as such it is a serious violation of its previous UN Security Council resolutions," the powerful world body said in a statement backed by Pyongyang-ally China, and the 14 other council members.

They reaffirmed that a clear threat to international peace and security continues to exist, especially in the context of the nuclear test weeks earlier. It was North Korea's fourth nuclear test.

The Security Council said its members restated their intent to develop "significant measures in a new resolution in response to the nuclear test conducted by North Korea on January 6, and in grave violation of its international obligations."

The members of the Security Council also recalled that they have previously expressed their determination to take "further significant measures" in the event of another North Korean launch.

In line with this commitment and the gravity of this most recent violation, the members of the Security Council will adopt expeditiously a new Security Council resolution with such measures in response to these dangerous and serious violations, the statement said.

North Korea said today it had successfully put a satellite into orbit, with a rocket launch widely condemned as a defiant step towards a missile capable of striking the US mainland.