Tokyo
The North Korean government has reportedly informed the Japanese government that it plans to launch a satellite between Thursday and August 31 in what is thought to be a rerun of a previous unsuccessful attempt, source reported.
On May 31, Pyongyang attempted to put into orbit what it claimed was a military spy satellite but was unsuccessful.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida gave the relevant government agencies instructions to study North Korea’s plan as thoroughly as possible and work with the US and South Korea to persuade Pyongyang to cancel the launch, according to source.
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According to Kishida, Japan considers North Korea’s launch of a rocket carrying a satellite to be the same as the shooting of a ballistic missile, in violation of Security Council resolutions that have led to sanctions being placed on Pyongyang. The North Korean government has announced plans to declare three maritime danger zones, two of which will be to the west of the Korean Peninsula and one to the east of the Philippine island of Luzon, according to the Japan Coast Guard. The three regions are not part of Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone.
