In a bold move that has drawn international condemnation, North Korea proudly announced the successful placement of its inaugural spy satellite into orbit on Tuesday. Despite protests from the United States and its allies, the reclusive nation asserted its intention to launch more satellites in the near future.
Reports from South Korea and Japan, the first to disclose the launch, indicate challenges in immediately verifying the satellite’s presence in orbit. Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh stated that the U.S. military is currently assessing the success of the launch.
In response to North Korea’s announcement, South Korea declared its intention to take measures to suspend parts of a 2018 inter-Korean agreement aimed at reducing military tensions. According to Yonhap news agency, the South Korean National Security Council stated that this would involve reinstating reconnaissance and surveillance operations in the vicinity of the military demarcation line between the two countries.
According to North Korea’s KCNA state news agency, the Malligyong-1 satellite was launched using a Chollima-1 rocket from the Sohae satellite launch facility. The launch reportedly occurred at 10:42 p.m. (1342 GMT), with the satellite entering orbit at 10:54 p.m. (1354 GMT), as confirmed by North Korea’s National Aerospace Technology Administration.
North Korea had previously informed Japan of its intention to launch a satellite between Wednesday and December 1. This comes after two unsuccessful attempts earlier in the year to launch what North Korea referred to as spy satellites.
