UN Security Council slams DPRK's latest failed ballistic missile launch

UNITED NATIONS -- The UN Security Council on Monday strongly condemned the most recent failed ballistic missile launch conducted by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Seoul's military said Sunday that the DPRK had test-launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile but ended in a failure.

In a press statement, the 15-nation council said the attempted launch is a grave violation of the DPRK's obligations under Security Council resolutions.

The Security Council has adopted five resolutions to curb the DPRK's nuclear and missile programs. The latest one adopted in March imposed the most severe sanctions yet on the country, including an export ban and asset freeze.

"The members of the Security Council deplore all Democratic People's Republic of Korea ballistic missile activities, including this failed launch, noting that such activities contribute to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's development of nuclear weapons delivery systems and increase tension," said the statement.

"The members of the Security Council reiterated the importance of maintaining peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in North-East Asia at large, expressed their commitment to a peaceful, diplomatic and political solution to the situation and welcomed efforts by Council members, as well as other States, to facilitate a peaceful and comprehensive solution through dialogue," it added.

The failed launch came on the day when the United States and the Republic of Korea (ROK) wrapped up their joint naval exercises in all of the three seas around the ROK.

The missile launch was the latest in a series of provocations by the DPRK following its fifth nuclear test last month. Pyongyang said on Sept. 9 that it successfully tested a nuclear warhead that can be mounted on ballistic missiles.