Russia, China press N. Korea to scrap rocket test

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Kyodo via Reuters, fileEngineers check the top of a rocket sitting on the launch pad during a guided media tour by North Korean authorities last April. The launch, which was heavily criticized by Russia, China and the U.S., failed when the rocket broke apart over the sea.By ReutersRussia and China urged North Korea on Monday not to go ahead with a plan for its second rocket launch of 2012, with Moscow saying the launch would violate restrictions imposed by the U.N. Security Council.

North Korea's state news agency on Saturday announced the decision to launch another space satellite sometime between Dec. 10 and Dec. 22, and reportedly told neighbors it would take a similar path to that planned for a failed rocket launch in April.

The country is banned from conducting missile or nuclear-related activities under U.N. resolutions imposed after earlier nuclear and missile tests.

North Korea says its rockets are used to put satellites into orbit for peaceful purposes, but that assertion is not widely accepted.

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