adminincluding the DPRK and the United States.
Responding to a report that the DPRK appears to be disassembling a long-range rocket it was planning to launch according to satellite images, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said, “We have noticed the report and are paying close attention to the situation.”
Hong told a regular Press briefing that China holds a clear and consistent stance on the issue.
He said China is in communication with all parties, including the DPRK and the United States.
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi had a phone call with his US counterpart Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on December 7, according to Hong.
“We hope parties concerned can take a long-term perspective, deal with this calmly and appropriately, avoid taking actions that may further escalate the situation, and jointly maintain the peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the region as a whole,” Hong said.
Russia has also said that it will monitor the DPRK’s planned satellite launch but sees no reason to put on alert its own missile defence, Russian Deputy Defence Minister Oleg Ostapenko said yesterday.
When asked by Interfax news agency if the Russia’s air defence units in the Far East will be put on high alert, Ostapenko said he did not see any sense in it.
The DPRK’s rocket was not capable of threatening Russia’s anti-missile systems, he added.
“We will monitor and in any case, the missile strike warning system and space control system will work,” he said.
The DPRK planned to launch a scientific satellite atop a three-stage rocket between December 10 to 22, but extended the launch window to December 29 due to “technical deficiency” in a rocket engine module, according to the official KCNA news age- ncy.
This will be the DPRK’s second launch this year after a failed attempt in April. — Xinhua.
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