BREAKING - UN Security Council Unanimously Condemns North Korea Rocket Launch

[Median Democrat]

I know that Newt Gingrich is saying that Barack Obama should have ordered a preemptive attack on the missle with special forces or shoot the missle out of the air with a frickin laser. Instead, the UN condemned the rocket launch. Interestingly, Russia gave credit to both the United States and China for working on an acceptable compromise, and agreed with the U.S. that the condemnation is as binding as a resolution.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7997336.stm

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The UN Security Council has unanimously condemned the launch by North Korea of a long-range rocket.

In a compromise statement, the 15-member council said it would tighten sanctions against Pyongyang in the wake of the 5 April launch.

The council adopted a statement calling on North Korea to comply with a 2006 resolution banning missile tests.

Pyongyang says its rocket carried a satellite, but several nations viewed it as cover for a missile test.

"The Security Council condemns the 5 April 2009 launch by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, which is in contravention of Security Council resolution 1718 of 2006," said Claude Heller, the Mexican president of the Security Council.

The statement also ordered the UN Sanctions Committee to begin enforcing both financial sanctions and an existing arms embargo against North Korea.

UN Secretary Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the council's move, saying it sent "a unified message".

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090413/ap_on_re_as/un_un_nkorea_missile

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The breakthrough in the U.N. response to the rocket launch came after Japan on Saturday dropped its demand that the council adopt a resolution, which is the strongest action the body can take.

Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin called the statement "a measured response" and said "most of the credit" for achieving consensus "must go to the U.S. and China."

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