North Korea launched a rocket on Monday that appeared to be an attempt to put a military reconnaissance satellite into orbit, South Korea’s military said, in violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has made deploying a fleet of spy satellites one of his latest military ambitions. He is also focused on testing what he calls nuclear weapons. Missile Capabilities The targets are the United States and its allies in the Asia-Pacific region.
North Korea says it needs satellites to enhance its ability to monitor and target enemies and make its nuclear deterrent more credible.
After two failed attempts, North Korea Placement The first spy satellite North Korea put three satellites into orbit last November. Kim Jong Un has said it will launch three more this year. On Monday, North Korea said it would launch the first of those by June 4.
Hours later, South Korea’s military said it detected a rocket launch from the Tongchang-ri space station in northwestern North Korea on Monday, flying over the sea between the Korean Peninsula and China, following the same southward trajectory used by North Korea in previous satellite launches.
South Korea’s military said the rocket was believed to be carrying a satellite. The military said in a statement that the country was analyzing the data collected to help determine whether the launch was successful.
North Korea is banned under U.N. Security Council resolutions from launching such rockets because they use the same technology used to build intercontinental ballistic missiles.
When such missiles are launched, South Korea and Japan typically put their militaries on alert and instruct residents on islands near the rocket’s trajectory to take shelter in buildings or underground to avoid being hit by falling debris.
South Korean officials said North Korea’s satellites were in their infancy and could hardly be considered reconnaissance tools.
But recently, North Korea has received satellite technology from Russia as well as oil and food in return. Artillery shells and ballistic missiles According to U.S. and South Korean officials, Russia is also helping North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs in another way: Earlier this year, Moscow Use of veto power Called on the UN Security Council to disband a UN panel of experts responsible for collecting evidence of countries violating sanctions on North Korea.
In recent weeks, Mr. Kim has visited military factories to encourage workers to increase production. North Korean state media has also broadcast footage of Mr. Kim inspecting large warehouses filled with missile launchers. South Korean analysts say the footage is intended to entice President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia to visit North Korea and show him the weapons he desperately needs. Meet Last September, Putin promised to visit North Korea during a tour of Russia’s Far East.
In recent weeks, North Korea has strongly protested joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises and its “hostile aerial espionage activities.” In a statement on Saturday, Kim Kang-il, North Korea’s vice defense minister, said such activities “have become the root cause of escalating military tensions in the region.”
