EU lashes out at DPRK's test-launch of ballistic missile

The European Union (EU) on Sunday lashed out at the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) for its test-launch of a ballistic missile, slamming the "provocative and unacceptable" move as another violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

"The DPRK must halt all launches using ballistic missile technology and abandon once and for all its ballistic missile programmes in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner, as required by the UN Security Council," a spokesperson of the European External Action Service (EEAS), the EU's diplomatic service, said in a statement.

Urging the DPRK to reengage in talks with international community, in particular the Six-Party talks, the spokesperson said EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini will further discuss international response with her counterparts.

The DPRK fired what is believed to be a ballistic missile into its eastern waters early Sunday, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

The presumed intermediate-range Musudan ballistic missile was launched at around 7:55 a.m. local time (2255 GMT Saturday) near Banghyeon in the DPRK's northwestern North Pyongan province.

The projectile is estimated to have traveled about 500 km, according to the JCS. It landed in waters off the DPRK's east coast, according to local media reports.

Pyongyang test-fired Musudan missiles near the same place, where an airfield is located, in October last year.

It was the DPRK's first test-launch of a ballistic missile in 2017 and also the first since U.S. President Donald Trump took office on Jan. 20.

source: Xinhua