BRUSSELS, May 25 (Xinhua) -- NATO's decision-making North Atlantic Council on Monday strongly condemned the nuclear and ballistic missile tests by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on the same day.

    "These irresponsible actions by Pyongyang pose a serious challenge to peace, security and stability in the Asia Pacific region and are being universally condemned by the international community," said the council in a statement.

    It noted that the "provocative action" of Pyongyang occurs during a period when the international community is seriously debating important new steps in global arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation.

    NATO urged the DPRK to implement fully all relevant UN Security Council resolutions and to eliminate its nuclear weapons and related programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner. It also called upon Pyongyang to refrain from any other actions which could contribute to raising tensions and to restore dialogue within the six-party framework.

    The alliance will continue to carefully monitor developments with deep concern, said the statement.