The United States called on the U.N. Security Council to take action against North Korea over its spate of ballistic missile launches while accusing Russia and China of "enabling and emboldening" Pyongyang by blocking attempts to impose pressure.
On Monday, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield called for a UNSC presidential statement to hold Pyongyang accountable for its latest missile launch, an ICBM that landed around 130 miles off the coast of Japan and was estimated to have the range to reach the entire United States.
Moscow and Beijing, permanent Security Council members with veto power, have impeded all efforts this year to add new sanctions or formally condemn North Korea.
"For too long, the DPRK has acted with impunity," Thomas-Greenfield said at a UNSC briefing Monday. "It has conducted escalatory and destabilizing ballistic missile launches without fear of a response or reprisal from this council."
