China supported a United Nations Security Council resolution on Tuesday that unanimously condemns the rocket launch in December by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and expands existing UN sanctions against Pyongyang.

The resolution, No 2087, calls for the DPRK to comply with all relevant resolutions previously approved by the Security Council by ending the use of ballistic-missile technology.

The document adopted on Tuesday adds six DPRK entities, including the government's Korean Committee for Space Technology and its chief, Paek Chang-ho, as well as three other individuals, to an existing UN blacklist.

On Dec 12, according to the country's official KCNA news agency, the DPRK launched into orbit an Earth-observation satellite. International observers, including UN member governments, classified the launch as involving a ballistic missile. The successful launch followed the post-liftoff disintegration in April of a rocket, described by the United States and its allies as a test of an intercontinental ballistic missile.

Speaking after the council vote, Li Baodong, China's permanent representative to the UN, said China's position on the issue is "very clear and consistent".

"We believe that actions taken by the council should be prudent, measured, proportionate and conducive to peace and stability, and should help an early turnaround of the situation and avoid acceleration of tension," Li told reporters after the vote at UN headquarters in New York.

Li said the new resolution - reflecting a consensus that emerged from consultations among council members - presents an opportunity for all parties involved in trying to quell tensions on the Korean Peninsula to revive their diplomatic efforts.

China is represented in the Six-Party Talks intended to halt the DPRK's nuclear and ballistic-missile programs. Besides the DPRK itself, other parties are the United States, the Republic of Korea, Russia and Japan. Substantive negotiations haven't taken place since 2008.

"All stakeholders should work together to talk to each other, to address their concerns from consultations and to have an early resumption of six-party talks," Li said.

He said the situation on the Korean Peninsula is at a "crossroads" and presents both an opportunity and a challenge, adding: "All parties should seek the opportunity and make inroads through political and diplomatic channels."

But sanctions and resolutions alone won't work, the Chinese diplomat said. They must "be supplemented by the diplomatic efforts through teamwork".

On Tuesday, KCNA carried Pyongyang's swift condemnation of the Security Council resolution. According to the report, the DPRK won't engage in further talks aimed at ending its nuclear program and will work to strengthen its military capabilities.

"We will take measures to boost and strengthen our defensive military power, including nuclear deterrence," KCNA cited the DPRK foreign ministry as saying.

The vote also showed unity among the 15-member council, whose five permanent members are China, the US, Britain, France and Russia.

Susan Rice, Washington's ambassador to the UN, said the US had had "particularly good bilateral cooperation with China in this regard", and with other council members, to reach the agreement.

"We think it is a strong and credible outcome worthy of the collective effort we all invested in it," Rice said after the vote.

China, the DPRK's main ally on the council, called the latest resolution "generally balanced".

"UN Security Council Resolution 2087 not only shows the stance of the international community on the DPRK's satellite launch, it also delivers some positive information, including calling for a peaceful solution to the (Korean) Peninsula issue through dialogue and negotiation, as well as the resumption of Six-Party talks," said Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang.

Ted Galen Carpenter, a defense and foreign-policy analyst at the libertarian Cato Institute in Washington, said China's support for the resolution sends a message to Pyongyang.

He said China, as one of the council's five permanent members, also fulfilled its responsibility in handling a thorny global issue.

"It also shows that Beijing is becoming more proactive - and constructive - in dealing with important regional and global security issues," said Carpenter. "Given China's growing economic and diplomatic influence, such a development is not surprising, and we should expect similar leadership initiatives on other matters in the future."

Jonathan Pollack, a foreign-policy analyst at the centrist Brookings Institution in Washington, said that despite unity on this latest resolution, China and the other UN Security Council members should consider if a piecemeal, step-by-step approach can persuade Pyongyang "to alter its nuclear course".

The Dec 12 launch violated previous council resolutions ordering the DPRK to stop activities involving nuclear weapons or efforts to develop them. The action sparked international condemnation including from immediate neighbors Japan and the ROK.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the council's unanimous resolution on Tuesday. He reiterated calls for the DPRK to refrain from taking any measure that could exacerbate tensions on the Peninsula, including further launches involving ballistic-missile or nuclear technology.

Ban issued a statement asking the DPRK to work to build confidence among its neighbors and improve the lives of its people, while reaffirming his commitment to peace and stability in the region.

yuweizhang@chinadailyusa.com

(China Daily 01/23/2013 page1)