Pakistan concerned over launch of intercontinental ballistic missile by North Korea

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This Friday, July 28, 2017, photo distributed by the North Korean government on Saturday, July 29, 2017, shows what was said to be the launch of a Hwasong-14 intercontinental ballistic missile at an undisclosed location in North Korea. The clear message after Friday’s late-night test, the second in a month of a missile that may be able to reach most of the U.S. mainland: Get used to this _ it’s the new normal. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

 

  • Says such launches constitute a violation of the UN Security Council resolutions 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday expressed concern over the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile by North Korea in a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“Such launches constitute a violation of the UN Security Council resolutions. These steps also undermine the goals of peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula, the North-East Asia region and beyond,” the Foreign Office said.

Earlier in the day, North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un had announced that his country had achieved full nuclear statehood after what he said was the successful test of a new missile capable of striking anywhere in the United States. State television said Pyongyang had achieved its mission of becoming a nuclear state.

The missile flew eastward from South Pyongan Province according to a news agency which said the South Korean military and the United States were analysing the development.

The intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launch snapped a two-month pause in testing by the North and poses a new challenge to US President Donald Trump who has vowed such a capability “won’t happen”. The missile was more sophisticated than any previously tested, state media said.

Pakistan continues to call upon the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) to comply with its obligations under the Security Council resolutions and to refrain from actions that could lead to an escalation of tensions, the FO said on Wednesday.