New York  - The UN Security Council on Monday condemned North Korea's launch of seven missiles, which defied an earlier UN resolution demanding a halt to such exercises.

The 15-nation Security Council issued the statement following close to three hours of closed-door discussion of Saturday's missile launches.

"The members of the Security Council condemned and expressed grave concern at the launch, which constitutes a violation of UN resolutions and posed a threat to regional and international security," the statement said.

It called on North Korea to fulfil its obligations under the UN charter and appealed to "all parties concerned" to refrain from any action that can exacerbate the situation in the region.

When Pyongyang exploded a nuclear device on May 25, the Security Council adopted a new set of tougher sanctions meant to impede North Korea's access to money and nuclear material and technology to pursue its nuclear ambitions. The council condemned the nuclear explosion and demanded that North Korea not "conduct any further nuclear test or any launch using ballistic missile technology."

North Korea exploded its first nuclear bomb in October 2006. (dpa)