Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements
Statement by Ambassador Barbara Woodward, UK Permanent Representative to the UN at the UN Security Council meeting on non-proliferation/Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
The United Kingdom unequivocally condemns the DPRK’s latest intercontinental ballistic missile launch.
This was the longest launch ever conducted by the DPRK, lasting 86 minutes.
This is yet another egregious violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions. It shows that the DPRK continues to advance its illegal nuclear and ballistic weapons programmes, posing a clear threat to global peace and security.
In 2024 alone, the DPRK has recklessly launched one failed satellite, two intermediate-range ballistic missiles, and at least 36 short-range ballistic missiles. The DPRK also attempted to launch one multiple independently targeted re-entry vehicle.
Year by year, the DPRK flaunts its growing nuclear capabilities. Yet still, some Council members prevent us from speaking out with one voice.
This strategy of silence has failed. It is time for us to act, to defend the global non-proliferation architecture, to uphold the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and to deliver on the mandate of this Council to address the most pressing threats to peace and security.
Colleagues, it is less than a week since we last discussed the DPRK’s flagrant violations of UN Security Council resolutions.
The Russian Foreign Minister alarmingly said that, “Applying the term denuclearisation to DPRK no longer makes any sense. This is off the table.”
This statement of fiction, alongside Russia’s veto of the 1718 Committee’s Panel of Experts earlier this year, has emboldened the DPRK to continue its unlawful behaviour knowing it has impunity from a permanent member of this Council.
I call on Russia, and all Members of this Council, to condemn this launch and restate their commitment to implementing all relevant Council resolutions.
I urge the DPRK to abandon its illegal nuclear and ballistic weapons programmes, which are diverting resources away from improving the lives of the DPRK’s people.
The UK is committed to securing peace on the Korean peninsula. We call on the DPRK to take up repeated offers from the United States and the Republic of Korea towards dialogue. Diplomacy is the only route to sustained peace on the peninsula.