Mon Sep 14, 2015 | 11:59 AM EDT
SEOUL (Reuters) -
North Korea's space agency is close to developing a new satellite and readying it for launch, state media said on Monday, suggesting it will fire a long-range rocket around a national anniversary next month.
North Korea will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of its ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) on Oct. 10 and has been expected to launch an upgraded long-range ballistic missile, viewed as a major violation of international sanctions.
"The world will clearly see a series of satellites
of Songun Korea soaring into the sky at the
times and locations determined by the WPK
Central Committee," the North's KCNA news
agency said, with Songun referring to its
"military first" policy.
"The NADA is pushing forward at a final phase
the development of a new earth observation
satellite," KCNA quoted the director of the
National Aerospace Development
Administration (NADA) as saying.
"Successful progress made in reconstructing
and expanding satellite launching grounds for
higher-level satellite lift-off has laid a firm
foundation for dynamically pushing ahead with
the nation's development of space science," the director said.
North Korea is banned under U.N. Security
Council resolutions from conducting tests that
use ballistic missile technology, but it has defied international warnings and sanctions to pursue missile and nuclear programs.
The North claims its rocket launches are part of a legitimate space program aimed at putting satellites into orbit.
Satellite images showed North Korea has
completed upgrades to its main satellite launch
site near the west coast, according to 38 North, the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University in July, fuelling speculation of a planned long-range rocket launch to celebrate the 70th anniversary.
But South Korea's defense minister said last
week there were no indications of actual
preparations for a missile launch.
The secretive country has an arsenal of
missiles of various ranges and is believed to be developing an intercontinental ballistic missile aimed at delivering nuclear weapons, although it is considered years away from such deployment.
In 2012, North Korea launched what is generally considered a long-range rocket, putting what it said was a satellite into orbit.
Pyongyang called it a space launch vehicle, but the international community said it was a missile that violated U.N. Security Council resolutions.
The North is also working to miniaturize a
nuclear warhead to mount on a delivery vehicle.
(Reporting by Jack Kim and Ju-min Park)
****Opinion****
How is it that a country that has very few lights at night would even consider putting a "satalite" in orbit! That's hogwash ... People are starving in the streets and it's almost a prison camp situation... Even China has just about had it with this .... Idiot..
This guy is flippin nutz ...
SEOUL (Reuters) -
North Korea's space agency is close to developing a new satellite and readying it for launch, state media said on Monday, suggesting it will fire a long-range rocket around a national anniversary next month.
North Korea will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of its ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) on Oct. 10 and has been expected to launch an upgraded long-range ballistic missile, viewed as a major violation of international sanctions.
"The world will clearly see a series of satellites
of Songun Korea soaring into the sky at the
times and locations determined by the WPK
Central Committee," the North's KCNA news
agency said, with Songun referring to its
"military first" policy.
"The NADA is pushing forward at a final phase
the development of a new earth observation
satellite," KCNA quoted the director of the
National Aerospace Development
Administration (NADA) as saying.
"Successful progress made in reconstructing
and expanding satellite launching grounds for
higher-level satellite lift-off has laid a firm
foundation for dynamically pushing ahead with
the nation's development of space science," the director said.
North Korea is banned under U.N. Security
Council resolutions from conducting tests that
use ballistic missile technology, but it has defied international warnings and sanctions to pursue missile and nuclear programs.
The North claims its rocket launches are part of a legitimate space program aimed at putting satellites into orbit.
Satellite images showed North Korea has
completed upgrades to its main satellite launch
site near the west coast, according to 38 North, the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University in July, fuelling speculation of a planned long-range rocket launch to celebrate the 70th anniversary.
But South Korea's defense minister said last
week there were no indications of actual
preparations for a missile launch.
The secretive country has an arsenal of
missiles of various ranges and is believed to be developing an intercontinental ballistic missile aimed at delivering nuclear weapons, although it is considered years away from such deployment.
In 2012, North Korea launched what is generally considered a long-range rocket, putting what it said was a satellite into orbit.
Pyongyang called it a space launch vehicle, but the international community said it was a missile that violated U.N. Security Council resolutions.
The North is also working to miniaturize a
nuclear warhead to mount on a delivery vehicle.
(Reporting by Jack Kim and Ju-min Park)
****Opinion****
How is it that a country that has very few lights at night would even consider putting a "satalite" in orbit! That's hogwash ... People are starving in the streets and it's almost a prison camp situation... Even China has just about had it with this .... Idiot..
This guy is flippin nutz ...
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