U.N. Security Council condemns North Korea missile launches

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council on Thursday condemned recent ballistic missile launches by North Korea, describing the three rounds of Scud short-range missiles fired in June and July as a violation of council demands on Pyongyang. "The members of the Security Council condemned these launches ... and urged the DPRK (North Korea) to fully comply with the relevant Security Council resolutions," said Rwandan U.N. Ambassador Eugene Gasana, council president for July. North Korea is under an array of United Nations, U.S. and other national sanctions for repeated nuclear and ballistic missile tests since 2006 in defiance of international demands to stop. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon deplored the continued missile launches by North Korea. "The Secretary-General urges the DPRK instead to work towards building confidence and mutual trust with its neighbors," Ban's press office said in a statement. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Mohammad Zargham)