South Korea and the United Nations' air navigation regulator, the International Civil Aviation Organization, will discuss this week ways to respond to North Korea's recent launches of ballistic missiles that came without the necessary declaration of no-fly zones, the foreign ministry said Tuesday.

"North Korea's unannounced launches of ballistic missiles will surely be discussed," spokesman Cho June-hyuck said in a briefing, referring to the meeting between Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and ICAO Secretary General Fang Liu slated for Thursday in Seoul.

"Actions that can be taken in regards to North Korea's firing off of ballistic missiles in violation of relevant regulations will be part of the discussion," the spokesman said, adding that international civil aviation security will be one of major issues to be dealt with at the meeting.

The planned meeting comes as South Korea is ratcheting up diplomatic efforts to tighten the screws on North Korea following the country firing off a series of ballistic missiles in defiance of bans imposed by the international community.

Last week, South Korea alerted the ICAO and the International Maritime Organization about the dangers of North Korea's recent ballistic missile launches conducted without prior warning, including the test-firing that took place on Aug. 3.

Under international treaties, countries planning a rocket launch are required to give advance notification to relevant United Nations regulators in order to warn planes and ships to stay clear of the areas that will be affected by the flight.

But Pyongyang has not declared no-fly or no-sailing zones for its recent ballistic missile launches.

In the same briefing, Cho also said the foreign ministry is closely analyzing the motives of a North Korean delegation's recent visits to Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo last week.

"North Korea's foreign ministry delegation visited Angola and the DR Congo through Aug. 5-6 as far as we know, and we are keeping close tabs on the results of the latest visits," Cho said.

"It seems it is North Korea's diplomatic attempt to break away from isolation at a time when United Nations sanctions, led by Resolution 2270, are being implemented," he said. "Similar diplomatic maneuvering should continue to take place in the future," the spokesman added. (Yonhap)