North Korea rocket launch a direct violation’ of UN resolutions

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg today blasted North Korea’s launch of a long-range rocket as a blatant breach of five UN resolutions and demanded Pyongyang comply with international law. In a statement, Stoltenberg said he strongly condemned the launch, which entailed the use of ballistic missile technology and came after a widely-condemned nuclear test on January 6. “This launch is in direct violation of five United Nations Security Council Resolutions,” he said. Those resolutions “repeatedly call for North Korea to suspend all activities related to its ballistic missile programme, to re-establish its pre-existing commitments to a moratorium on missile launching and not to conduct any further nuclear test or any launch using ballistic missile technology,” he said. “NATO continues to call on the North Korean authorities to comply with their obligations under international law, not to threaten with or conduct any launches using ballistic missile technology and to refrain from any further provocative actions.” North Korea earlier announced that it had placed a satellite into orbit under its right to the “peaceful and independent” use of space.