NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday strongly condemned North Korea’s launch of a space rocket with a reconnaissance satellite on board, which crashed into the Yellow Sea due to a technical failure.
“I strongly condemn the attempted launch of a military satellite by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea using ballistic missile technology,” the Norwegian politician said in a statement.
According to Stoltenberg, North Korea’s action “increases tensions and poses serious security risks in the region and beyond.”
“It is a flagrant violation of several United Nations Security Council resolutions,” he said.
The NATO secretary general called on North Korea to stop taking such “provocative actions” and return to dialogue to “achieve sustainable peace and complete and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.”
Stoltenberg also expressed NATO’s support for South Korea and Japan. North Korea said on Wednesday that the space rocket it launched on Wednesday with a reconnaissance satellite on board crashed into the Yellow Sea due to a technical failure and that it will attempt another similar launch soon.
The North Korean launch triggered anti-missile alerts in Seoul, South Korea and the island of Okinawa in southwestern Japan, where the missile would have flown over.
Source: TSF
