Japan and the United States on Monday agreed to refer the reported nuclear
test by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to the UN Security
Council, Kyodo News reported.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki told reporters after
meeting with U.S. Ambassador to Japan Thomas Schieffer that the two sides had
decided to work together to take the issue to the UN Security Council.
Schieffer did not confirm whether DPRK had conducted the nuclear test. "This
is a very grave situation and we all are following it with great intensity," he
said.
DPRK's official Korean Central News Agency said Monday morning that the
country had successfully conducted its first-ever underground nuclear test.
The Japan Meteorological Agency later said it had detected around 10:35 a.m.
(0135 GMT) an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.9 in the northeast of
the DPRK.
