1. On the heels of North Korea’s launches of mid-range ballistic missiles on March 26, the government of the Republic of Korea, in a bid to urge the international community to take strong and stern measures in response, raised the issue at the UN Security Council, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

* North Korea launched 90-odd rockets and ballistic missiles toward the East Sea starting from February 21 without taking prior measures to ensure safety, such as issuing notice to airmen (NOTAM) or declaring no-fly zones.

2. In this regard, the UN Security Council, ICAO and the IMO expressed the following positions in response to the launches by North Korea.

[UN Security Council]

○ In their closed-door consultation on March 27, member states of the UN Security Council agreed to announce press elements condemning the North Korean launches as a violation of relevant UN Security Council resolutions and calling for consultations on an appropriate response.

○ In their closed-door meeting on April 10, members of the North Korea Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council reaffirmed North Korea’s launches of ballistic missiles as a violation of relevant UN Security Council resolutions and agreed to continue consultations on follow-up measures based on the incident report to be submitted by the Committee’s Panel of Experts.

[ICAO]

○ President of the Council of ICAO Olumuyiwa Aliu informed to the ROK on April 10 that, at the request of the ROK, the US and Japan, he brought attention of North Korea’s civil aviation authorities to their risky actions and reminded them of their obligation to give prior notice over their actions that could endanger the safety of civil aircraft in flight.

[IMO]

○ IMO Secretary-General Koji Sekimizu informed to the ROK on April 10 that at the request of the ROK, he sent to the North Korean Ambassador to the UK a letter pointing out North Korea’s failure to give the IMO a notice prior to its launches of ballistic missiles and rockets and underscoring the importance of giving such notices.

* North Korea, as a signatory country to the ICAO Convention created in 1944 and the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) drawn up in 1974, is obliged to ensure the safety of civilian aircraft and ships by providing relevant information to stakeholders. 


                         Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations of MOFA

* unofficial translation