UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is increasingly concerned about reports of new launches of ballistic missiles by North Korea, his office said. "The secretary-general urges the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) to cease its ballistic-missile activities and focus, together with other countries concerned, on the dialogue and diplomacy necessary to maintain regional peace and security," a Ban spokesman said. "Such launches are contrary to building trust in the region." North Korea reportedly test fired two medium-range ballistic missiles Wednesday from a site north of the capital, Pyongyang, into the sea off its east coast. Several launches of short-range missiles have been concluded in recent weeks.
