N. Korea condemns UN Security Council meeting on its hypersonic missile test

People watch a TV report about North Korea's launch of a missile at Seoul Station in central Seoul, Jan. 14. Yonhap

North Korea on Sunday strongly condemned a recent meeting of the U.N. Security Council convened to discuss Pyongyang's recent test-fire of a hypersonic missile and other issues.

The council held the closed-door meeting Thursday, days after the North launched what it claims was a solid-fuel intermediate-range ballistic missile tipped with a hypersonic warhead last Sunday.

"The U.N. Security Council, at the brigandish demand of the U.S. and its vassal states, convened a closed-door negotiation to discuss the hypersonic missile test-fire, which was conducted as a part of the DPRK's regular efforts for bolstering up its defense capability," the North's foreign ministry said.

The North also said in the statement, carried by the official Korean Central News Agency, that the test-fire "gave no harmful affect to the security of neighboring countries and it had nothing to do with the present regional situation."

The North also claimed the launch was "part of regular and legitimate activities of sovereign state."

"This is a wanton violation of the sovereignty of the DPRK, an unpardonable provocation and an irresponsible act of deliberately escalating the critical situation on the Korean peninsula," the statement said.

"We deeply regret that the UNSC has brought the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's sovereign right to the discussion without any expression of concern, far from detention and restraining of the grave military threat of the U.S. and its vassal states that breaks peace and stability on the Korean peninsula, and strongly denounce it." (Yonhap)