UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United States and its allies clashed Friday with North Korea, Russia and China over Pyongyang’s failed attempts to launch a spy satellite and who is responsible for escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
The open Security Council meeting called by the U.S., Albania, Ecuador, France, Japan and Malta to condemn the attempted launch, which used banned ballistic missile technology, was attended by North Korea’s United Nations ambassador for just the second time since 2017.
Ambassador Kim Song, who also addressed the council in July, told members the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea — the country’s official name — has “an independent and legitimate right” as a sovereign country to launch a satellite for “self-defense to deter the ever-increasing hostile military acts of the United States and its followers.”
The North’s space agency said Thursday its reconnaissance satellite, Malligyong-1, failed for a second time to go into orbit, blaming an error in its third-stage flight. Pyongyang said it will make a third attempt in October to achieve a key military goal of its leader, Kim Jong Un.
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said the DPRK had again defied Security Council resolutions by pursuing its unlawful ballistic missile program. She said 13 of the 15 Security Council members oppose the DPRK’s unlawful actions and have called for an end to the…
