Beijing – China has expressed serious concern over North Korea’s plan to launch a long-range rocket this month.
Lu Kang, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman, admitted that government could prevent North Korea from going ahead with the planned launch.
This move was coming after North Korea notified UN agencies of its plan to launch a long-range rocket carrying what it called an “earth observation satellite” sometime between Feb. 8 and 25.
“We express our serious concern about that,” Lu told reporters, when asked about North Korea’s planned rocket launch.
Kang expressed the believe that North Korea had the right for the peaceful use of space, but called on UN Security Council to restrict the right.
He said China hoped that North Korea could exercise restraint, but acknowledged that Beijing could not force Pyongyang to drop its provocations.
“We don’t want to see any escalation of tensions.
Meanwhile, China, North Korea’s diplomatic backer and economic lifeline, has expressed displeasure over the North’s nuclear and missile programs, but resisted calls for tougher new sanctions against North Korea, following the latest nuclear test.
Many analysts believe that China’s Communist Party leadership won’t exert enough leverage on North Korea because a sudden collapse of the North’s regime could threaten China’s own security interests.
The analysts noted that North Korea was again preparing to launch a long-range rocket this month, weeks after the latest nuclear test on Jan. 6.
They said such launches had been viewed by the international community, as disguised ballistic missile tests and North Korea was banned from conducting them under UN resolutions. (Yonhap/NAN)
