The U.N. Security Council is slated to hold an emergency meeting on Wednesday afternoon over North Korea's latest missile launches following a request made by the United States and Japan, diplomats said.
"Confronted with the threat of proliferation, we consider that weakness is not an option and based on all this we favor a quick and firm reaction of the Security Council," said Francois Delattre, U.N. ambassador of France, the rotating council president of the month.
Speaking to reporters, he expected that the 15-member council would agree to a press statement that he hopes would be issued as soon as possible, as has been the pattern after most of North Korea's recent medium-range firings.
The latest launches occurred on Wednesday morning Japan time, with one of the Musudan missiles flying about 400 km and reaching an altitude of more than 1,000 km, prompting global concerns amid what appears to be technological advances.
The Musudan has a potential range of between 2,500-4,000 km, which could reach any target in Japan and South Korea, as well as U.S. military bases on the Pacific island of Guam.
The first missile that was launched reportedly flew only about 150 km before breaking up midair, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff. This was also the case for four previous Musudan missiles that have been tested since April.
A diplomat told Kyodo News that concern over the Musudan that traveled further was what caused the meeting to be called.