U.S., other nations condemn North Korean rocket launch
- 8 years ago
North Korea has successfully launched a satellite into space, its state-run TV said, an action immediately condemned by the United States as "destabilizing and provocative."
Carrier rocket Kwangmyongsong-4 blasted off from the Sohae Space Center at 9 a.m Sunday local time, state news agency KCNA confirmed.
Though North Korea said the launch was for scientific, "peaceful purposes", adding it plans to launch more satellites, it was viewed by other nations, such as Japan and South Korea, as a front for a ballistic missile test, especially coming on the heels of North Korea's hydrogen bomb test last month.
A senior U.S. defense official said the rocket headed toward space and, based on its trajectory towards the Yellow Sea, "did not pose a threat to the U.S. or our allies."
The United States, Japan and South Korea have called for an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting on Sunday, a senior U.S. official told CNN.
Carrier rocket Kwangmyongsong-4 blasted off from the Sohae Space Center at 9 a.m Sunday local time, state news agency KCNA confirmed.
Though North Korea said the launch was for scientific, "peaceful purposes", adding it plans to launch more satellites, it was viewed by other nations, such as Japan and South Korea, as a front for a ballistic missile test, especially coming on the heels of North Korea's hydrogen bomb test last month.
A senior U.S. defense official said the rocket headed toward space and, based on its trajectory towards the Yellow Sea, "did not pose a threat to the U.S. or our allies."
The United States, Japan and South Korea have called for an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting on Sunday, a senior U.S. official told CNN.