G7 foreign ministers on Sunday condemned North Korea’s launch of a long-range ballistic missile on November 18, while urging the UN to take «meaningful action» in the face of rising tensions in the region.
The heads of diplomacy of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and the United States, together with the High Representative of the European Union, Josep Borrell, condemned «in the strongest terms» the «brazen launch» of an intercontinental ballistic missile last Friday.
«This missile launch is yet another flagrant violation by North Korea of United Nations Security Council resolutions,» the joint statement reads.
«This reckless act, along with evidence of ongoing nuclear activities, underscores the Democratic Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) determination to advance and diversify its nuclear weapons and missile capabilities,» the G7 members explain before warning that these actions «further destabilize the region.»
Thus, the major industrialized countries have lamented that the series of «unprecedented illegal (…) launches represent a serious threat to regional and international peace and security.» «They also represent a danger and an unpredictable risk to international civil aviation and maritime navigation in the region,» they added.
«We reiterate our demand that the DPRK abandon its nuclear weapons, existing nuclear programs and any other weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner and immediately cease all related activities,» the ministers urged.
UNITED RESPONSE FROM THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY The G7 foreign ministers assured that Pyongyang’s actions «demand a united and robust response from the international community, including the need for further meaningful action by the United Nations Security Council.»
«We call on all states to fully and effectively implement all UN Security Council sanctions against North Korea and to address the risk of proliferation of (DPRK) weapons of mass destruction as an urgent priority,» the joint communiqué continued.
The group has pledged to «work with all relevant partners towards the goal of peace and security on the Korean peninsula and to uphold the rules-based international order.»
The G7 also urged Kim Jong Un’s government to resume dialogue towards denuclearization, as well as to accept offers for negotiations made by Washington, Tokyo or South Korea.
Pyongyang has been testing missiles with an unusually high frequency this year, including short- and long-range ballistic missiles, as well as a medium-range missile that flew over the Japanese archipelago. The intercontinental projectile launched Friday can carry several nuclear warheads to a radius of about 15,000 kilometers, enough to reach the entire U.S. mainland.
