Beijing urges DPRK restraint after satellite launch plan reports

China voiced "serious concerns" and urged the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to exercise restraint on Wednesday in response to media reports of Pyongyang's plan to launch a satellite later this month.

The DPRK should "act in a cautious manner and not resort to actions that may further heighten tension in the (Korean) peninsula situation", Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said in the daily news conference in Beijing.

A United Nations spokesperson said on Tuesday that three UN organizations have been informed that the DPRK plans to launch an Earth-observation satellite between Feb 8 and 25.

Lu said the DPRK is entitled to peaceful use of outer space, yet this right is restricted by resolutions of the UN Security Council.

China will continue to communicate with all parties concerned to safeguard peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, he said.

It is a shared responsibility of all parties concerned to maintain peace on the peninsula, and regional stability is in the interests of all, the spokesman said.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi said during a visit last week by US Secretary of State John Kerry that sanctions are not an end unto themselves and any new UN resolution should not provoke new tensions.

Xinhua and AP contributed to the story.