Kim Jong-un calls for spy satellite, citing US threat

BLOOMBERG

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered the launch of a military spy satellite, a move that could allow him to keep an eye on US allies as well as advance his state’s ability to deliver a nuclear warhead to the American mainland.
Kim called for the launch of the state’s first military reconnaissance satellite within a planned timeframe, during a visit to the National Space Development Agency, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.
He was accompanied by officials from the Reconnaissance General Bureau, an agency accused by the US and others of clandestine operations and illegal financial activities to dodge sanctions.
Kim said possessing military reconnaissance satellites would play a crucial role in North Korea’s defense capabilities, sovereignty and legitimate right to self-defense, KCNA said. He added his country must be prepared to face “military threats and challenges” from the US and South Korea.
North Korea last launched a space rocket in February 2016, when the country claimed to have put an earth-observation satellite into orbit as part of what it said was a lawful space program. The satellite is thought to have never reached orbit.
While the country is barred by United Nations Security Council resolutions from conducting ballistic missile tests, Pyongyang has long claimed it’s entitled to have a civilian space program for satellite launches.
While the space program was once seen as a key driver of technology for the military program, its importance has decreased over years as North Korea has greatly enhanced its ability to construct ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads that could strike the US and America’s allies in Asia.
Still, a satellite launch would add to security concerns that Kim’s state has ratcheted up to levels not seen in years with tests of new weapons for the nuclear strikes.
These have included a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile launched for the first time this month that could be quickly deployed to target the US and new missiles systems to hit US troops stationed in South Korea and Japan.
South Korea is also set to launch its own home-grown Nuri rocket next month as it seeks to advance its civilian space program.
Earlier this month the US, South Korea and Japan held joint naval drills off the peninsula in a move that angered North Korea. The last time similar drills were held in 2022, Pyongyang fired its first missile over Japan in five years.
The two-day anti-submarine and rescue drills were held in international waters off South Korea’s Jeju Island and included vessels from the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier group.
The launch came after leader Kim this week called for “practical and offensive” war capabilities as his state issued a fresh warning to the US over joint military drills and cut communications links with South Korea used to reduce tensions on their heavily armed border.
North Korea has fired 16 ballistic missiles since February 18, which included three ICBMs and new projectiles to deliver nuclear strikes against South Korea and Japan.