N Korea launches long-range rocket in defiance of UN sanctions

Japan's Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida has called for stronger sanctions to be placed on North Korean after the isolated nation launched a long-range rocket at the weekend.

The United Nations has condemned the launch at an emergency meeting and vowed to take "significant measures" in response to the violation of UN resolutions.

The UN Security Council has strongly condemned North Korea's rocket launch.

The Security Council has reiterated its intent to take "significant measures" in response to the nuclear test in January, it said in a statement.

"The members of the Security Council strongly condemned this launch," Venezuelan Ambassador Rafael Dario Ramirez Carreno, president of the council this month, told reporters.

He said the launch was "a serious violation of Security Council resolutions."

U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power told reporters: "We will ensure that the Security Council imposes serious consequences. DPRK's (North Korea) latest transgressions require our response to be even firmer."

The United States and China began discussing a U.N. sanctions resolution after Pyongyang's Jan. 6 atomic test.

The foreign secretary has said the North Korean missile test is a "slap in the face" for the UN and the international community.

Philip Hammond said: "North Korea's actions are extremely destabilising in the region and beyond."

Hammond said he had spoken to the Japanese foreign minister this morning and they are looking into economic sanctions that could be applied against North Korea, but it does require agreement across the UN security council.

The Foreign Secretary has condemned North Korea's "ballistic missile technology test" saying the country's actions were "a threat to regional and international security".

Philip Hammond will attend an emergency meeting with UN Security Council members to agree a collective response.

Russia has condemned North Korea's launch of a long-range missile calling it a serious blow to security in the region

"It is obvious that such actions lead to a serious aggravation of the situation on the Korean peninsula and Northeast Asia on the whole...(and) inflict serious damage to the security of the countries of the region, first and foremost North Korea itself," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

The ministry urged the leadership of North Korea to "think about whether a policy of opposing the entire international community meets the interests of the country."

South Korea and the United States will begin discussions on deploying an advanced missile-defence system to Seoul in response to North Korea's recent ballistic missile tests.

US military officials said the sophisticated system called Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) was needed in South Korea, to counter the growing threat of North Korea's weapons capabilities.

North Korea launched a long-range rocket earlier on Sunday carrying what it has called a satellite. South Korea, other countries and the US denounced the launch as a missile test.

China's Foreign Ministry has expressed 'regret' at a long-range rocket launch by North Korea.

Beijing called on all sides to act cautiously and refrain from taking steps that might further raise tensions on the Korean peninsula.

Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said: "China expresses regret that North Korea, in spite of the pervasive opposition of the international community, insisted on using ballistic missile technology to carry out a launch."

She added that dialogue is the only way to ensure lasting peace and stability in the region.

North Korea's state television said a long-range rocket launch on Sunday, ordered by leader Kim Jong-Un to put a satellite into space, was a "complete success".

The announcer said the satellite, called 'Kwangmyongsong-4', is orbiting the earth every 94 minutes and the North would continue to launch satellites in future.

The rocket was fired from a launch pad on North Korea's west coast between 9.30am and 9.35am local time on a southern trajectory over the East China Sea.

Debris from the rocket crashed back to earth around 155 miles off the south-west coast of the Korean Peninsula around 14 minutes after take-off.

Meanwhile United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon strongly condemned the launch and urged Pyongyang to "halt its provocative actions."

The Foreign Office has "strongly" condemned North Korea's launch of a long-range rocket thought to have been a test of its ballistic missile technology.

North Korea, which says its rocket programme is aimed at launching satellites, fired the rocket from its missile base on the west coast on Sunday

South Korean President Park Geun-hye described North Korea's long-range rocket launch on Sunday as "an unforgivable act of provocation" and called on the UN Security Council to swiftly adopt strong sanctions.

Park said the North was trying to make advances in its missile capability only to sustain its regime.

North Korea's state television said there will be a special broadcast about Pyongyang's rocket launch at noon (local time).