BREAKING NEWS

UN Security Council holds emergency session on North Korea

UNITED NATIONS - The United Nations Security Council began an emergency meeting on North Korea's rocket launch on Sunday and diplomats said they expected the 15-nation body to condemn Pyongyang and redouble efforts to agree on new sanctions.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the closed-door session, France's UN  ambassador, Francois Delattre, described North Korea's launch of a long-range rocket on Sunday as an "outrageous provocation."
"That's why weakness is not an option," he said. Asked about plans for a Security Council resolution to impose sanctions following a North Korean nuclear test last month, Delattre said: "The sooner the better, the firmer the better."
British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said on Sunday he had spoken with his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida and both had agreed the Council should take strong action against North Korea.
Council diplomats said they expected it to issue a unanimous statement of condemnation on Sunday. They said that, in the coming days and weeks, Beijing and Washington would continue bilateral discussions on the outline of a new resolution to expand existing UN sanctions on North Korea.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, one senior Western diplomat said he hoped the council would be able to vote on a new sanctions resolution this month.