UN council set to condemn DPRK launch

A draft UN Security Council statement condemning Pyongyang's rocket launch - but avoiding a fresh resolution - has "to a considerable degree" eased threats to regional peace and the future of the Six-Party Talks, analysts said yesterday.

The five permanent council members and Japan agreed on Saturday to a presidential statement with tough wording as a compromise between inaction and Tokyo's demand for a legally-binding fresh resolution. The deal ended a week-long deadlock on the council's response to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s launch on April 5.

"If the UN Security Council had avoided a response to Pyongyang's rocket launch, Japan might have taken action on its own, which could have been more damaging," said Jin Canrong, an international relations expert with Renmin University of China.