SEOUL, April 16 (Xinhua) -- Major South Korean presidential candidates on Sunday condemned the failed test of a missile by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), calling for restraint on provocations.
The DPRK test-launched an unidentified missile earlier in the day, but it was believed to have exploded during the launch. It was seen as a failure, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
The test-launch came amid rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, which were caused by the dispatching of the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier and its accompanying warships to the peninsula.
The presidential election campaign camp of Moon Jae-in, a frontrunner in recent opinion polls and a former chief of the biggest Minjoo Party, described the attempted missile test as reckless provocations.
The Moon camp said in a statement that it was not understandable for the DPRK to conduct any provocative acts when the U.S. Carl Vinson strike group is approaching the Korean Peninsula.
The camp with Ahn Cheol-soo, a runner-up to Moon in opinion polls and a former head of the centrist People's Party, condemned the acts by the DPRK, asking key political parties to call in the meetings of committees for defense and foreign affairs to prevent any possible military conflicts.
