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N Korean Missile Launch 'Clearly Contributes' to Development of Nukes - UK

© AFP 2023 / YONHAP / NORTH KOREAN TV North Korea's rocket launch of earth observation satellite Kwangmyong 4
North Korea's rocket launch of earth observation satellite Kwangmyong 4 - Sputnik International
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North Korea's recent missile launch "clearly contributes" to its nuclear weapon development efforts and breaches UN Security Council resolutions, UK's Asia Minister Hugo Swire said Monday.

LONDON (Sputnik) — On Sunday, North Korea announced it had successfully launched the Kwangmyongsong-4 satellite atop a long-range rocket.

"This test, even if characterized as a space launch vehicle or launch of a satellite, clearly contributes to North Korea’s development of nuclear weapon delivery systems and is a serious violation of UN Security Council Resolutions," Swire said in a statement published by the Foreign Office.

A North Korean long-range rocket is launched into the air at the Sohae rocket launch site in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang February 7, 2016. - Sputnik International
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"The UK is working closely with international partners at the UN to agree a collective response to this latest provocation," the statement reads.

The North Korean ambassador in London was summoned to the Foreign Office on Sunday over the issue.

Tensions over North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs escalated after Pyongyang said on January 6 that it had successfully carried out a hydrogen bomb test, triggering condemnation from the international community and prompting the UN Security Council to begin drafting an anti-DPRK resolution.

North Korea previously reported a successful satellite launch in 2012, in violation of the UN Security Council resolution.

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