UN aviation agency voices concern over recent North Korean missile launches

People watch a TV report at a train station in Seoul, March 16, about North Korea's launching of an unidentified projectile. Yonhap

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) expressed concern Wednesday about North Korea's continued missile launches, stressing the moves posed a "serious risk" to international civil aviation.

The Montreal-based U.N. agency's governing body reiterated its concern over the North's recent "unannounced missile launches which pose a serious risk to international civil aviation," according to a statement posted on its website.

North Korean projectile launch deemed a failure: South Korean military 2022-03-16 10:52  |  North Korea
"As an ICAO Member State, the DPRK is expected to notify adjacent countries of any activity or incident arising from its territory which may pose risks to nearby civil aviation routes or operations," it added, using the acronym for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Earlier in the day, the North fired an unidentified projectile, but the launch seems to have ended in a failure, South Korea's military announced.

Pyongyang conducted what it claimed to be "reconnaissance satellite" development tests, Feb. 27 and March 5, which Seoul and Washington have labeled as intercontinental ballistic missile system tests. (Yonhap)