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進入《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》 UN condemns N Korean launch
A North Korean soldier yesterday stands on a watchtower on the banks of the Yalu River in the town of Sinuiju. Photo: EPA
RUSSIAN REACTION: A Kremlin spokesman said the launch was a violation of international law, but would not say whether Russian components had been used
/ AP, SEOUL
The UN Security Council on Sunday condemned North Korea’s launch of a long-range rocket that world leaders called a banned test of ballistic missile technology and another “intolerable provocation” and pledged to quickly adopt a new resolution with “significant” new sanctions.
The UN move was followed yesterday by a strong condemnation by the Kremlin, which called Sunday’s launch a violation of international law.
“Our attitude to this launch ... was unambiguously displayed in the full unity of the Security Council,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists in a conference call.
However, asked about reports that Russian components had been used in the rocket launch, Peskov said: “This is rather a technological question,” but did not elaborate.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un went ahead with the launch just two hours after an eight-day window opened early on Sunday, and a month after the country’s fourth nuclear test.
He ignored an appeal from China not to proceed, and, in another slap to Beijing, he chose the eve of the Lunar New Year, the nation’s most important holiday.
In a reflection of heightened hostilities between the rival Koreas, the South Korean Ministry of National Defense yesterday said a South Korean naval vessel fired five shots into the water as a warning yesterday when a North Korean patrol boat briefly moved south of the countries’ disputed boundary line in the Yellow Sea.
At the UN, the US, backed by Japan and South Korea, wants tough sanctions reflecting Kim’s defiance of the Security Council. However, diplomats say China, the North’s key protector in the council, is reluctant to impose economic measures that could cause the North’s economy to collapse — and a flight of North Koreans into China across their shared border.
US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power told reporters that “it cannot be business as usual” after two successive North Korean acts that are “hostile and illegal,” referring to Sunday’s launch and a nuclear test on Jan. 6.
“What’s important is that the Security Council unites,” Power said. “China is a critical player… We are hopeful that China, like all council members, will see the grave threat to regional and international peace and security, see the importance of adopting tough, unprecedented measures, breaking new ground here, exceeding the expectations of Kim Jong-un.”
However, Chinese Ambassador to the UN Liu Jieyi （劉結一） made clear that unprecedented sanctions are not Beijing’s priority.
He said a new resolution should “do the work of reducing tension, of working toward denuclearization [of the Korean Peninsula], of maintaining peace and stability, and of encouraging a negotiated solution.”
“I believe the council needs to work together for a new resolution,” Liu added, indicating that China may want negotiations with the US to be widened.
Additional reporting by Reuters
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
