United Nations Shows Displeasure for North Korea’s Continued Missile Tests

United Nations Shows Displeasure for North Korea’s Continued Missile Tests

By E. Stanley Ukeni

It would appear that the patience of the United Nations is running thin, with North Korea’s blatant disregard of the international organization’s prohibition of hermit nation’s nuclear and missile tests.  

On Sunday, May 22, 2017, North Korea defiantly test-fired their Pukguksong-2 medium range ballistic missile—a solid fuel powered missile system. This was the latest in a series of provocative missile launches this year alone. It would seem that, in recent years, Pyongyang has accelerated its efforts to develop and deploy intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM), with the aim of advancing the ability to strike the United States in the event of a war.

The UN Security Council, on Monday, May 23, 2017, issued a strongly worded condemnation of North Korea’s Sunday, provocative ballistic missile test—demanding a halt to all further missile tests that violate U.N. sanctions.

The statement, which was drafted by the United States, was markedly similar to one adopted last week after the North Koreans test-launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile that the North Korean government claimed was capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.   

However, it is uncertain that this recent demand by the UN would compel the North Korean regime to reign in there evolving nuclear and missile programs, which the United States’ governments asserts are significantly increasing tension in the Korean peninsula and beyond. If the past is any indication, it’s unlikely that Pyongyang would heed this UN demand.

In a unanimous statement backed by the Chinese government, the UN Security Council vowed to further strengthen the already stringent sanctions regime against North Korea that was adopted last year. In my opinion, I don’t think this would, in the least bit, faze the North Korean Leader, Kim Jong Un. The North Koreans have always found a way to beat the sanction regime, and it seems to me that the country’s leadership is confident that they would continue to do so.   

At the urging of the South Korea, Japan and the United States, the United Nations Security Council is holding an emergency, closed-door, meeting today, Monday, May 23, 2017, to deliberate on further actions to be taken against the North Korean regime, for its flagrant violation of the UN sanction against the country.

Despite the rhetoric that would come out of this current United Nations Security Council’s closed-door meeting, I have a feeling that the Russians and the Chinese would pursue a regional security self-interest that would ensure that the North Korean government is not significantly harmed by whatever new policies that the UN Security Council would eventually adopt.

Unfortunately for our world, it would seem that medium and long term self-interest trumps collective global peace and security. But, we continue to hope for the best.    

Authored by E. Stanley Ukeni, © 2017. All Rights Reserved. This material and other articles or stories posted on this blog site may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed, in whole or in part, without prior expressed written permission from the author, E. Stanley Ukeni.

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