PARIS, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- France on Friday denounced "in the strongest possible terms," the latest missile launch by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) over Japanese territory, the country's Foreign Ministry said.
Reiterating solidarity with its Asian partners, France called the DPRK's move to build a nuclear and ballistic program a "violation of its international obligations," which put at risk the security of the region and the international community.
"In the face of this threat, France is prepared to work -- particularly within the UN Security Council and the European Union -- to strengthen measures to convince the Pyongyang regime that escalation is not at all in its interest and to bring it to the negotiating table," the Quai d'Orsay added in a statement.
The DPRK reportedly fired, earlier on Friday, a missile that flew over Japan's northern Hokkaido far out into the Pacific Ocean.
At the request of the United States, Japan and South Korea, the U.N. Security Council was to meet to discuss the missile launch.
China on Friday said it opposes ballistic missile launches by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) against UN Security Council resolutions
On Monday, the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution to impose sanctions on DPRK over its nuclear test on Sept. 3, the ninth UN sanctions resolution adopted on the DPRK since 2006.
The sanctions resolution curtailed the DPRK's oil supply by almost 30 percent, and banned all of its textile exports worth 800 million U.S. dollars and remittances of DPRK laborers from abroad. Enditem
