Philippines condemns North Korea’s ‘dangerous, provocative’ missile launches

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. condemned Monday North Korea’s recent ballistic missile launches, saying such “dangerous” actions pose a threat to global stability. 

“We join Japan, together with the rest of the ASEAN, in condemning the continued threat that the launching [of] ballistic missiles by the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] represents,” Marcos was quoted as saying in a release issued by the Presidential Communications Office. 

Marcos made the remarks before his speech at the AsiaZero Emission Community (AZEC) meeting in Tokyo, Japan as part of the 50th Commemorative ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation Summit. 

“As we speak on economic progress in our region, we found these aspirations in a peaceful and stable Indo-Pacific Region. So, such dangerous and provocative actions by the DPRK threaten and destabilize the region and the world,” he said 

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida described North Korea’s two missile launches as a “threat to peace and stability.”

South Korea’s military reported detecting the launch of a long-range ballistic missile from the Pyongyang area Monday morning before it splashed down in the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan. 

Japan’s defense ministry said it was an ICBM-class missile with a potential range of more than 15,000 kilometers that covers all of the United States. 

In November last year, the Philippines also condemned North Korea’s missile launches, and urged Pyongyang to comply with its obligations under United Nations Security Council resolutions and commit to peaceful dialogues with South Korea. — Gaea Katreena Cabico with reports from Agence France-Presse