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UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 5 (AP) — The U.S. and its allies clashed with China and Russia on Friday over North Korea’s escalating ballistic missile launches and U.S.-led military exercises in South Korea, again preventing the deeply divided U.N. Security Council from taking any action. action.
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said North Korea had “launched a staggering 59 ballistic missiles this year,” including 13 since Oct. 27, and at missiles about 50 kilometers off the coast of South Korea. (30 miles) in one that caused an “unprecedented impact”, roughly more than boosting Pyongyang’s military capabilities and seeking to escalate tensions and stoke fear among neighbors.
She said 13 of the 15 Security Council members have condemned North Korea’s actions since the beginning of the year, but Pyongyang has been under the protection of Russia and China, which have “stepped back” for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to repeatedly violate U.N. sanctions defend. Korea, or DPRK, the country’s official name.
“And, in turn, they made North Korea possible and mocked this committee,” she said.
Zhang Jun, China’s ambassador to the United Nations, retorted that North Korea’s missile test was directly related to the resumption of large-scale military exercises between the United States and South Korea after a lapse of five years, involving hundreds of fighter jets. He also noted that the U.S. Department of Defense’s 2022 Nuclear Posture Review envisaged North Korea’s use of nuclear weapons and claimed that ending the North Korean regime was one of the strategy’s main goals.
Anna Evstigneeva, Russia’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations, blamed the sharp deterioration in the situation on the Korean peninsula on “Washington’s desire to force Pyongyang to unilaterally disarm through sanctions and pressure and force”.
She called the U.S.-South Korea drills, which began on October 31, an unprecedented scale of about 240 military aircraft, saying they were “essentially a rehearsal for a massive strike on North Korean territory.”
US’ Thomas Greenfield responds to China and Russia’s claims that military exercises are raising tensions on the Korean peninsula: “This is nothing more than a rumination of North Korean propaganda.” Long-term defensive military exercises “do not threaten anyone,” she said , let alone North Korea.”
“By contrast, just last month, North Korea said its latest series of launches simulated the use of tactical battlefield nuclear weapons to ‘strike and destroy’ potential U.S. and South Korean targets,” she said. “North Korea is just using this as an excuse to continue advancing its illegal plans.”
The Security Council imposed sanctions after North Korea’s first nuclear test explosion in 2006 and has tightened them over the years in an attempt to rein in and cut off funding for its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. However, in May, China and Russia blocked a Security Council resolution that would tighten sanctions on missile launches, the first serious disagreement in the Security Council on sanctions against North Korea.
The rift remains and appears to be deepening, but Russia, China and the United States do agree on one thing: the need to renegotiate and resolve the growing crisis on the Korean peninsula through diplomacy.
China’s Zun called on the U.S. to “stop unilaterally exaggerating tension and confrontation” and “respond to North Korea’s legitimate and legitimate concerns and create conditions for the resumption of meaningful dialogue.” He said the Security Council should not seek to apply additional pressure on North Korea, but should contribute to “restarting dialogue and negotiations to address the humanitarian and livelihood difficulties North Korea faces.”
Russia’s Evstigneeva said further sanctions would threaten North Korean citizens “with unacceptable social, economic and humanitarian instability” and reiterated “the need for preventive diplomacy and the importance of Washington seeking political-diplomatic solutions and practical steps.” , rather than just committing to a substantive dialogue.”
Thomas Greenfield said that even in the face of North Korea’s escalating missile launches, “the United States remains committed to a diplomatic solution” and has conveyed requests to North Korea for talks with all levels of the U.S. government.
“Despite Pyongyang’s lack of engagement, we will continue to seek meaningful dialogue,” she said. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from the Syndicated News feed, the body of the content may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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