North Korea launched a multistage rocket with a communications satellite at 11:30 a.m. (02:30 a.m. GMT) over Japan on Sunday, defying pressure from the United States, Japan and South Korea and other countries, which suspect the communist regime of testing its Taepodong-2 long-range missile.
"We are checking whether this [launch] is a violation of the corresponding resolutions of the UN Security Council and call on all parties to refrain from actions that could lead to the escalation of tensions on the Korean peninsula," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
North Korea's launch of a long-range rocket was condemned by the United States and other countries. Meanwhile, the secretive communist regime insisted that the launch was meant to put a civilian satellite into orbit.
U.S. President Barack Obama said that North Korea's latest rocket launch was a clear violation of UN Security Council Resolution No. 1718, which prohibits North Korea from the launches of ballistic missiles.
Obama also said that North Korea could not be considered as a full-fledged member of the international community until it gave up attempts to create mass destruction weapons.
