UN Security Council meeting on the Launch of ballistic missiles by the DPRK

I thank ASG Khiari for the briefing.
 
This week alone the DPRK has launched over 20 missiles and since the beginning of the year more than 50. These missile launches, which are unprecedented in scale, frequency, diversity and in some cases, trajectory are in clear breach of several Security Council resolutions.
 
The report that one of the missiles launched this week was an ICBM, coupled with the fact that a missile landed very close to South Korean territorial waters marks a new and dangerous phase of escalation of tensions with adverse consequences on the peace and security of the Korean peninsula, the region and the world. Ghana is gravely concerned about the current launches and others before it, and firmly deplores them. Present trends holding, we are just one misunderstanding, one miscalculation away from open confrontation on the peninsular.
 
Surely, the Council can no longer turn a blind eye to the possibility of open confrontation on the Korean peninsula. The world is already fragile and we must ensure that we avert any such possibility. We stand at a critical juncture! During the Council’s last meeting on this situation last month, many members expressed concern that urgent action was needed to deescalate tensions on the peninsular and the wider region. Though the Council could not agree on an acceptable path forward, our future actions should not be divergent.
 
Inaction is not an option! A united and purposeful Security Council is therefore needed. As a Council, we must call on the DPRK to take concrete, immediate and urgent steps to refrain from further missile tests and call on all parties to deescalate the tensions in the region. We must also reiterate our call on the DPRK to adhere to the relevant Security Council resolutions and resume constructive and credible dialogue with the relevant parties in a manner that recognises the regional and global security concerns.
 
We hope that this Council and other relevant parties would be able to act in a swift manner to disperse the gathering clouds of open confrontation on the Korean peninsula and usher in a climate that preserves the peace while at the same time ensuring that humanitarian needs of the people of the DPRK are addressed.
 
I thank you for your attention.