The U.N. Security Council on Friday deplored the launch of a rocket which North Korea said was intended to send an Earth-observation satellite into orbit. U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice of the United States, which holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council this month, said the council deplored the launch, which is in violation of Security Council Resolutions 1718 and 1874. Those resolutions ban North Korea from using ballistic-missile technology. The country was placed under U.N. sanctions for nuclear tests it conducted in 2006 and 2009. The North Korean launch failed after less than two minutes, with the rocket exploding and failing into the Yellow Sea, various media reported.
