YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 8, ARMENPRESS. The United Nations Security Council on February 7 strongly condemned North Korea's latest rocket launch and promised to take punitive steps, while Washington vowed to ensure the 15-nation body imposed "serious consequences" on Pyongyang as soon as possible, “Armenpress” reports, citing Reuters.

"The members of the Security Council strongly condemned this launch," Venezuelan Ambassador Rafael Dario Ramirez Carreno, president of the council this month, told reporters. He said the launch was "a serious violation."

He added that the 15-nation council "restated their intent to develop significant measures in a new Security Council resolution in response to the nuclear test" in January, as well as Sunday's rocket launch. He said they would work "expeditiously."

Standing alongside her Japanese and South Korean counterparts, U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power told reporters: "We will ensure that the Security Council imposes serious consequences. DPRK's (North Korea) latest transgressions require our response to be even firmer."

North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since its first nuclear test in 2006. It has conducted three more atomic tests since then, including the one last month, along with numerous ballistic missile launches.

The sanctions ban its work in nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles; blacklist a number of individuals and entities and bar the country's leadership from importing luxury goods.

The United States and China began discussing a resolution to expand the existing sanctions after Pyongyang's atom bomb test on Jan 6. Power said she hoped the council would have a draft resolution to vote on "as quickly as possible."

"It is urgent and overdue," she said.

Diplomats say Washington is closely consulting with Japan, South Korea, Britain and France on its discussions with China, while Beijing is keeping in close contact with Russia.