The UN Security Council has strongly condemned North Korea's fifth nuclear test and pledged to work immediately on drafting a new resolution of additional sanctions on Pyongyang.

The Security Council convened a closed-door emergency meeting at the UN headquarters in New York on Friday attended by its 15 members and sternly denounced the North's nuclear test. The council also adopted a press statement saying it will pursue new sanctions on the communist regime. 

After the meeting requested by South Korea, the U.S. and Japan ended,  Ambassador Gerard van Bohemen of New Zealand, which holds the rotating presidency of the U.N. Security Council, read the press statement. The statement said the North's nuclear test was a "clear violation and flagrant disregard of Security Council resolutions."New Zealand

The statement expressed regret that the North's provocation came despite repeated warnings by the UNSC. It said that Council members also recalled they had previously expressed determination to take "further significant measures" in the event of another nuclear test by North Korea.

The statement said that in line with this commitment and gravity of the violation, Council members will begin work immediately on appropriate measures.

The Security Council is expected to adopt a new resolution at the earliest date possible. Given it typically takes three weeks to put together a resolution, a fresh resolution sanctioning Pyongyang could even be produced by this month. 

But the move can be delayed if Council members differ on the level of sanctions. It took 56 days for the UNSC to agree on a resolution following the North's fourth nuclear test in January. 

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