PH expresses concern, calls on N. Korea to stop ‘dangerous, provocative actions’

The Philippines expressed its grave concern over the firing by North Korea Tuesday morning of a ballistic missile that flew over Japanese airspace.

This is the second time the DPRK fired a missile over Japanese

airspace. The last time a North Korean rocket flew over Japan was in 2009, when Pyongyang said it was a satellite launch. Washington, Seoul and Tokyo believed it was a clandestine test of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

The first missile launch was in 1998.

A visibly unsettled Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said it was an "unprecedented, serious and grave threat," while the UN Security Council called an emergency meeting at Tokyo and Washington’s request.

Sirens blared out and text messages were sent across northern Japan warning people in the missile's flightpath to take cover.

Trains were delayed as passengers were urged to seek shelter inside stations.

"All lines are experiencing disruption," said one sign on Sapporo's metro system. "Reason: Ballistic missile launch."

Dangerous

In a statement, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano called on North Korea to halt "these dangerous and provocative actions, which heighten tensions, increase instability and the risk of miscalculation, and could possibly endanger lives."

The missile, which was launched at 5 a.m. (Philippine time) soared over Japanese territory for two minutes before crashing into the Pacific.

"We recall the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Statement on Developments in the Korean Peninsula issued on August 5th and urge the DPRK to fully comply with its obligations under the relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions,” Cayetano said.

"ASEAN and the Philippines, as this year's Chair, remain committed to peaceful resolutions of conflict," Cayetano stressed. "While we are ready to do our part, provocations such as this latest missile launch should stop to help us put in place an environment that would be conducive for dialogue."

The Secretary said he has instructed the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo to continue to closely monitor the situation and to ensure that the estimated 242,000 Filipinos living and working in Japan are safe.

"I wish to assure our kababayans in Japan that our Embassy in Tokyo and our Consulate General in Osaka are prepared to assist them should it be necessary,” Secretary Cayetano added.

Russia was "extremely worried" about the situation in North Korea, hitting out at a "tendency towards an escalation" after Pyongyang fired the ballistic missile over Japan.

"We see a tendency towards an escalation... and we are extremely concerned by the general developments," Russia's deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying by RIA Novosti state news agency.

Ryabkov said the huge joint military drills between South Korea and the United States, which began on August 21, "had played their role in provoking Pyongyang into this new firing."

Tens of thousands of troops are participating in the two-week "Ulchi Freedom Guardian" exercise on the Korean Peninsula in a move which the North views as highly provocative, seeing it as a rehearsal for an invasion. (With a report from AFP)