Last week’s ballistic missile test carried out by North Korea in the Sea of Japan, a clear violation of United Nations resolutions, will only serve to heighten tensions and increase the risk of an armed conflict.
The missile test is the latest “provocative step” taken by the isolated North Korean regime in an already tense and highly militarised region that is also home to South Korea and Japan and US military bases in those countries.
It is believed that the latest ballistic missile flew about 500km before splashing down into the Sea of Japan, and, more significantly, used a solid fuel which can give missiles longer range and make detecting them before launch difficult because they can be readied faster than liquid fuel missiles.
The missile launch caps a series of tests carried out by the North Korean regime last year at an unprecedented rate in violation of United Nations resolutions. The ‘hermit kingdom’ has repeatedly flouted six UN Security Council resolutions demanding an end to its nuclear and ballistic missile activities and imposing tougher sanctions.
The UN Security Council was swift to “strongly condemn” North Korea and it warned of “further significant measures” if Pyongyang doesn’t stop nuclear and missile testing.
A council statement agreed to by all 15 members followed strong condemnation by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of the latest launch and US President Donald Trump’s pledge to deal with North Korea “very strongly.”
Nikki Haley, Trump’s UN ambassador, said in a statement: “It is time to hold North Korea accountable — not with our words, but with our actions,” she said.
But so far, sanctions have not have any impact on the regime of  Kim Jong-un. In 2016 two different sanctions were levied on Pyongyang after two nuclear tests. In fact, North Korea conducted nearly a  dozen missile tests during the course of last year. So, clearly UN has very little leverage over North Korea.
The only country that wields any influence over the North Korean regime is China. In Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said his country opposed the missile test and called on “relevant sides not to take provocative actions”. China has always maintained that the root cause of the missile launches is North Korea’s friction with South Korea and, particularly, the United States.
The latest missile test is viewed as an implicit challenge to the new Trump administration. “North Korea is a big, big problem and we will deal with that very strongly,” Trump said at a joint news conference on Monday with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Trump has pledged a more assertive approach to North Korea but is yet to give a clear sign of how his policy would differ from Obama’s so-called ‘strategic patience’.
Patience, not provocation, is what is needed at the moment. As it is, the world is grappling with multiple crises – the Middle East, Syria, Iraq, Islamic State, refugees...you name it. The last thing one needs now is sabre-rattling by North Korea and its adversaries.