MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Earlier on Sunday, North Korea fired a long-range rocket, defying a UN Security Council resolution which bans Pyongyang from launching rockets that may be used as ballistic missiles carrying nuclear warheads. Japan’s National Security Council held a meeting shortly after the incident, as the rocket flew over Japan’s Okinawa prefecture.
"The launch…is yet another outright and grave violation of its [North Korea's] international obligations…These actions represent a direct threat to international peace and security in the region and beyond, and they further aggravate tensions on the Korean Peninsula to the detriment of all," Mogherini said in the statement.
North Korea must refrain from escalating regional tensions and return to the Six-Party Talks on the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, she added.
"The European Union is in close contact with all its partners and we will work with the UN Security Council, which will meet later today in an emergency session, to address this latest act," the statement added.
