: He ignored an appeal from China, its neighbor and important ally, not to proceed, and, in another slap to Beijing, he chose the eve of the Chinese New Year, the country most important holiday, according to Asahi Shimbun. In a reflection of heightened hostilities between the rival Koreas, South Korea Defense Ministry said a South Korean naval vessel fired five shots into the water as a warning Monday when a North Korean patrol boat briefly moved south of the countries' disputed boundary line in the Yellow Sea. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un went ahead with the launch just two hours after an eight-day window opened early Sunday, and a month after the country fourth nuclear test. Since its Jan. 6 nuclear test, which the North claimed was a powerful hydrogen bomb, despite outside skepticism, China and the United States have been negotiating the text of a new Security Council sanctions resolution. At the U.N., the United States, backed by its allies Japan and South Korea, wants tough sanctions reflecting Kim defiance of the Security Council. North Korean rocket launches and nuclear tests are seen as crucial steps toward Pyongyang ultimate goal of a nuclear-armed missile that could hit the U.S. mainland.
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