Thursday, July 6 2006 11:13 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Moscow: World leaders yesterday (July 5, 2006) condemned North Korea for conducting multiple missile test launches, saying they were provocative and violated moratorium declared by Pyongyang.

Russia said the move undermined international efforts to ease nuclear tension on the Korean Peninsula.

North Korean ambassador to Moscow was summoned by the foreign ministry to express Russia's protest over the missile tests causing concern among the residents of some of the far eastern city close to the coastal area where the debris of the missiles landed.

"The launch has threatened shipping in the Pacific Ocean and violated common practices of advanced missile launch notification," the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement.

"Russia expresses serious concern over these actions, which run counter to the expectations of the global community and its efforts to strengthen peace and stability in the region and could complicate even further the resolution of the nuclear crisis on the Korean peninsula," the statement said.

North Korea today officially announced that it had conducted test launches of ballistic missiles and claimed it was the country's sovereign right.

The totalitarian communist nation launched the missiles, including a long-range Taepodong-2, despite a volunatrily moratorium on missile tests in the backdrop of negotiations with the US and ongoing six-party talks including Russia, China, Japan, and South Korea.