cnn
—
North Korea’s second attempt to put a spy satellite into orbit failed on Thursday due to a malfunction in the rocket’s third stage, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.
The failed launch came after North Korea The first attempt failed in May.when the new Chollima-1 satellite vehicle crashed into the sea shortly after takeoff.
Pyongyang will attempt another launch in October, KCNA said.
The latest launch, carried out at dawn on Thursday, “failed due to an error in the emergency explosion system during the flight of the third stage,” according to the report.
The rocket broke into multiple parts before falling into the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea and the Pacific Ocean in the early hours of Thursday, Japanese parliamentary Deputy Defense Minister Kimi Onoda said.
After salvaging the wreckage, the South Korean military said the latest satellite’s design was too crude to do its job, even if it had been successfully launched.
The launch prompted Japan to issue an emergency appeal for residents of the southern region of Okinawa to evacuate. Since then the evacuation call has been lifted.
Japan said North Korea sent an email on Tuesday saying it planned to launch a satellite in the direction of the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea between August 24 and 31, in an area outside Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone. Japan.
Following that email, the Japanese Coast Guard issued a navigation advisory for this area, asking ships to watch for falling objects.
The launch has been condemned by Japan, South Korea and the United States.
At a press conference on Thursday, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said Japan “strongly protests” North Korea’s latest launch and “condemns it in the strongest terms,” adding that the launch used technology of ballistic missiles.
Matsuno called the launch “a serious matter that violates the United Nations Security Council resolution prohibiting any launch using ballistic missile technology by North Korea.”
He said the Japanese government had called an emergency meeting and was collecting and analyzing details of the launch, which would be shared with the public as soon as they were available.
So far there have been no reports of damage to ships or planes, Matsuno added.
South Korea’s National Security Council (NSC) also condemned the launch, calling it a “serious violation of the UN Security Council resolution.”
The NSC deplored North Korea for “leading its people to starvation and death by wasting the few resources it has on reckless provocations.”
At a meeting on Thursday morning, NSC members vowed to strengthen cooperation with the United States and Japan to prevent North Korea’s illegal activities, such as the exploitation of North Korean workers abroad, cyber hacking and smuggling in the sea.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol received a report of the NSC’s discussions and ordered the NSC to share the results of Thursday’s analysis with the United States and Japan, and “prepare for further provocations from North Korea.” , according to a statement issued by the country’s presidential office.
The US National Security Council condemned the launch as a “blatant violation” of multiple UN Security Council resolutions, saying it “increases tensions and risks destabilizing the security situation in the region and beyond.” ”.
“This space launch involved technologies that are directly related to the DPRK’s ICBM program,” council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson wrote in a statement several hours after the launch.
“The president’s national security team is assessing the situation in close coordination with our allies and partners. We urge all countries to condemn this launch and ask the DPRK to come to the table for serious negotiations.”
The launch comes days after US President Joe Biden met the leaders of Japan and South Korea at Camp David. During the summit, the three leaders vowed closer cooperation to guard against North Korea’s nuclear threats and urged Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
North Korea is expected to celebrate its 75th founding day on September 9 with a military parade.
Had the launch been successful, it would have been a timely boost for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.