Tech News Update

North Korea defied world leaders and United Nations’ resolutions this morning to launch a ballistic missile test.

The missile blasted off in the early hours from a coastal site in the north east of the country, prompting immediate condemnation from Britain and the U.S.

The U.S. and other nations suspect the launch was a cover for a test of North Korea’s long-range missile techonology.

President Barack Obama was woken up with the news it had taken off this morning, during his stay in the Czech republic at the end of his hectic European tour.

South Koreans watch the North Korean rocket launch on television. The launch was branded a ‘provocative action’ by US President Barack Obama

He immediately declared that the launch threatened the security of countries ‘near and far’.

In a speech this morning, Mr Obama announced a new international effort to secure nuclear material within 4 years. He said that North Korea had broken the rules and ‘now is the time for a strong international response.’

The US President added that the US would be hosting a summit on nuclear security within the next year.

He told reporters that the go demands a response from the international community.

He added that it underscores the plot he will be setting out later today about the need to combat the spread of nuclear weapons. 

Barack Obama speaking today in Prague. The US President said that North Korea had broken the rules and that ‘now is the time for a strong international response’

The security council said it would hold an emergency session in New York tonight, following a request from Japan minutes after the launch. 

In Britain, David Miliband condemned the launch of a rocket by North Korea today as a ‘hostile policy’.

The Foreign Secretary said it represented part of the Asian country’s ‘ballistic missile programme’ and therefore breached a United Nations Security Council resolution.

‘While Pyongyang continues to pursue a hostile policy towards the rest of the world, it cannot hope to take its rightful place within the international community.

‘I strongly urge North Korea to stop immediately all further missile-related activity and commit to engaging constructively with international partners,’ he said.

A protestor in front of the pro-Pyongyang General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, following North Korea’s rocket launch this morning

The multistage rocket flew over Japan and landed in the Pacific Ocean, the Japanese broadcaster NHK said. 

The launch took place at 3.30am UK time from the coastal Musudan-ri launch pad in north-eastern North Korea, the South Korean and US governments said.

North Korea has previously said it was sending a satellite into orbit, but the state’s neighbours suspected the launch was a cover for a long-range missile test and therefore a potential step towards the development of a nuclear weapon.

Mr Miliband said: ‘I strongly condemn North Korea’s action in conducting a satellite launch earlier today.

A satellite image shows the Musudan Ri rocket launch facility in North Korea

‘This action contributes directly to their ballistic missile programme, and therefore puts North Korea in breach of UN Security Council Resolution 1718.’

South Korea’s presidential Blue House called the launch a ‘reckless’ go that posed a ’serious threat’ to stability on the Korean peninsula.

Presidential spokesman Lee Dong-kwan said: ‘We cannot contain our disappointment and regret over North Korea’s reckless act.’

The Taepoding-1, described as the first generation of North Korea’s ballistic missile. The communist state is set to test the second generation in three or four days, reports claim 

Japanese prime minister Taro Aso told a news conference: ‘Our primary concern is to confirm safety and gather information.’

President Obama said it was a clear violation of the security council resolution 1718, which prohibits North Korea from conducting ballistic missile-related activities of any kind. 

‘I urge North Korea to abide fully by the resolutions of the UN security council,’ he said.

He had said last week that the launch would be ‘provocative’ and warned the US would ‘take appropriate steps to let North Korea know that it can’t threaten the safety and security of other countries with impunity’.

If the long-range rocket has test-fired successfully, North Korea would have a strike range of 4,200miles – putting it at least in range of Alaska in the US

North Korea would not find acceptance in the international community ‘unless it abandons its pursuit of weapons of mass destruction’, the President added.

His statement came from Prague, in the Czech Republic, where he will made a speech today on nuclear proliferation.

The Chinese government has reportedly called on all sides to show restraint following news of the launch.