North Korea wants to continue the launches

North Korea wants to continue the launches

The further show of defiance by Pyongyang came amid intense diplomatic jockeying by the United States and its allies to prod the U.N. Security Council to take stern action against the North's seven missile tests on Wednesday.

The North Korean Foreign Ministry, in a statement made through the state-run Korean Central News Agency, insisted that the communist state had the right to test its missiles and argued the weapons were needed for defense.

The ministry also appeared to confirm mounting fears in South Korea that the North was preparing for further launches. South Korean officials said intelligence showed continued activity at Northern missile sites, the AP reports.