DPRK says satellite launch coming 'soon'

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(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-04-04 12:19

SEOUL – The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) said preparations to launch a communications satellite into space were complete Saturday morning and liftoff was imminent, as warships of the US, Japan and the Republic of Korea (ROK) with radar plied waters near the nation to monitor what they fear is a long-range missile test.

DPRK says satellite launch coming 'soon'

This satellite image provided by DigitalGlobe shows a launchpad at Musudan-ri, the DPRK formally known as Taepo-dong missle launch facility. The image was collected Thursday April 2, 2009. [Agencies]

Spy satellites trained high-resolution cameras on a coastal launch pad for a launch the DPRK earlier advised international authorities would take place sometime between Saturday and Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (0200 to 0700GMT).

"Preparations for launching 'Kwangmyongsong-2,' an experimental communications satellite, by carrier rocket 'Unha-2' have been completed at the satellite launching ground in the east coastal area," the state-run Korean Central News Agency reported, citing information from the Korean Committee of Space Technology. "The satellite will be launched soon."

Conditions were cloudy over the launch area Saturday — not perfect, but without the strong winds that could force a delay.

The DPRK is pressing ahead despite mounting international pressure to call off a launch President Barack Obama said Friday would be "provocative."

"Respective nations made efforts to urge the DPRK to refrain from the launch. But if the DPRK really plans to launch, it is very regrettable," Japanese Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone told reporters Saturday.

Washington, Seoul and Tokyo suspect the DPRK's real motive is to test its long-range missile technology.

Obama, appearing with French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Strasbourg, France, said the launch should be stopped. The American president said the US will "take appropriate steps to let the DPRK know that it can't threaten the safety and security of other countries with impunity."

US, Japan and the ROK deployed warships with radar and other surveillance equipment in the waters near the DPRK to monitor the launch.

Two US destroyers are believed to have departed from the ROK to monitor the launch. The ROK is using its destroyer equipped with Aegis ballistic missile defense technology, said a Seoul military official who asked not to be identified, citing department policy.

The DPRK has complained that the US is using high-altitude U-2 spy planes and has warned the aircraft would be shot down if they intrude into its airspace.

Japan has deployed warships and Patriot missile interceptors off its northern coast to shoot down any wayward rocket parts that the DPRK has said might fall over the area. Tokyo has said it is only protecting its territory and has no intention of trying to shoot down the rocket itself, but the DPRK accused Japan of inciting militarism at home to justify developing a nuclear weapons program of its own.

The DPRK has said its rocket will fly over Japan, its first stage expected to fall in waters less than 75 miles (120 kilometers) from Japan's northwestern shore and the second stage dropping in the Pacific between Japan and Hawaii.

Pressure on Pyongyang to drop the plan has been intense.

Stephen Bosworth, the US envoy on the DPRK, said the nation would face consequences if the launch goes ahead.

"Whether it's a satellite launch or a missile launch in our judgment makes no difference. It is a provocative act, and we hope that they will still reconsider," Bosworth said.

But he also said he is prepared to go to Pyongyang after the "dust from the missiles settles" in order to restart six-nation negotiations aimed at getting the DPRK to abandon its nuclear program.

John Bolton, a former US ambassador to the UN and ex-undersecretary of state in charge of the DPRK's nuclear dossier, called the launch "essentially an act of defiance against the Security Council."

"A wrist slap by the Security Council won't mean anything and, in fact, I think the DPRK will take that as a sign of weakness," he said. "It'll say they got away with the test."

The DPRK has warned against any efforts to censure it, claiming it has the right to the peaceful use of outer space. It also has threatened retaliation against any efforts to intercept the rocket, telling Japan such a move would mean "war."

ROK has set up task forces, including at the Defense Ministry and Joint Chiefs of Staff, to monitor and swiftly respond to a launch. The Foreign Ministry met Saturday morning to draw up post-launch measures.

Kim Ho-nyeon, a spokesman for ROK's Unification Ministry, said Saturday it has warned ROK citizens staying at two joint economic zones in the DPRK to avoid unnecessary contacts with DPRK citizens, stay in their residences and follow other safety measures. He said the instruction was issued due to the "grave" situation on the Korean peninsula, though he said the move was not directly related to the launch.