SEOUL, June 1 (UPI) -- North Korea's nuclear and missile systems pose a grave threat to the region and could be met with a firm response, the South Korean foreign minister said.
North Korea tried to send a satellite into orbit using a long-range rocket in April, ending a moratorium that was declared in exchange for food assistance from the United States. Similar launches coincided with North Korean nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009.
South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan said Pyongyang's actions posed a significant threat to the Korean Peninsula and the surrounding Asian community.
"North Korea should realize that any further provocations will be met with a firm response from the international community," he was quoted by South Korean news agency Yonhap as saying.
Pyongyang this week amended its constitution in order to declare itself a nuclear weapons state.
The Security Council in its April statement said North Korea was in violation of resolutions banning ballistic technology. Kim said it was time for the North Korean regime to live up to its international obligations.
