![Kim Jong Un is getting aggressive. [Image via Flickr/driver Photographer]](https://staticr1.blastingcdn.com/media/photogallery/2017/8/30/660x290/b_502x220x82/kim-jong-un-in-germany-driver-photographer-via-flickr_1539621.jpg "Kim Jong Un is getting aggressive. [Image via Flickr/driver Photographer]")
North Korea is making a habit of increasingly aggressive missile launches. Recent days have seen the regime of Kim Jong Un test-fire its missiles beyond its own territorial waters directly toward Japan, a major regional foe of the regime. Following a weekend barrage of three missiles that were fired over the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido, North Korea has drawn a timid rebuke from the world governing body at the United Nations Security Council.
Latest provocations from Kim Jong Un
The latest test fire of missiles marked an end to relative calm in the region, with Kim Jong Un slowing the rate of missile launches and rhetoric between himself and President Trump ticking downward.
However, the latest round of launches has drawn a more measured response from the president, and condemnation from the UN.
After a four-hour meeting between the 15-member Security Council, the emergency session resulted only in a statement condemning the test fires as “outrageous actions.” The UN Security Council elaborated on its condemnation, stating that the missile launches from North Korea are “not just a threat to the region, but all UN member states.”
However, the Security Council stopped short of offering up any new ideas for sanctions or other punishment for the rogue regime. Currently, there are eight sets of sanctions in place against North Korea, many of which were adopted following a meeting in June 2017.
That meeting resulted in the first-ever draft resolution backed by both the United States and China. The latter nation typically protects the hermit kingdom from fierce backlash with its veto power on the council.
U.S responds to North Korea’s provocation
Nikki Haley, the ambassador to the United Nations for the United States commented following the emergency session that the Security Council’s statement shows “the world is united against North Korea.” Ambassador Haley hinted at a possible response from the US, stating that it “will not allow this lawlessness to continue,” with her boss President Donald Trump has also pointing out that “all options are on the table.” In terms of actionable response to North Korea's missile launches, the United States has tested its own ballistic missile defenses.
President Trump is again showing signs of his patience wearing thin, indicating he doesn't understand why, at this juncture, the United States should leave the door open to communication with Kim Jong Un. He remarked to the Washington Post on Wednesday that "talking is not the answer."
