North Korea tried to put a military reconnaissance satellite into orbit on Monday, but the rocket carrying the satellite exploded in mid-air shortly after takeoff, South Korea’s military said, marking the country’s third failed attempt to put a spy satellite into orbit.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has made deploying a fleet of spy satellites one of his latest military ambitions. He is also focused on testing nuclear missiles that he claims can target the United States and its allies in the Asia-Pacific region.
North Korea has said it needs satellites to enhance its ability to monitor and target enemies and make its nuclear deterrent more credible.
After two failed attempts, North Korea launched its first spy satellite into orbit last November. Mr. Kim Jong-un said he would launch three more satellites this year. On Monday, North Korea said it would launch the first of three missiles before June 4.
Hours later, South Korea’s military said it had detected a rocket launched from the Dongchang-ri space station in northwestern North Korea. The rocket flew over the sea between the Korean Peninsula and China, following the same southern orbit used by North Korea in previous satellite launches.
South Korea’s military said the rocket was believed to be carrying a satellite. But it said it deemed the launch a failure after detecting debris falling into North Korean waters two minutes after liftoff. The South Korean military added that the rocket was believed to have exploded in mid-air.
North Korea also confirmed a launch failure, with its state-run Korean Central News Agency reporting that a booster for its newly developed rocket carrying a military reconnaissance satellite exploded in mid-air.
The United States, South Korea and Japan have been watching preparations for a North Korean rocket launch for weeks. South Korea’s military said in a statement that as of Monday, it had deployed naval ships in the waters surrounding the Korean peninsula to monitor the rockets and collect data.
A U.N. Security Council resolution bans North Korea from launching long-range rockets because they use the same technology needed to build intercontinental ballistic missiles.
South Korea and Japan typically put their military on alert during such launches and instruct residents on islands near the rocket’s trajectory to take shelter inside buildings or underground to avoid falling debris.
South Korean officials say North Korean satellites were once so rudimentary that they could barely be considered reconnaissance tools.
But more recently, North Korea has received satellite technology as well as oil and food from Russia in exchange for artillery shells and ballistic missiles to help Moscow’s war in Ukraine, according to U.S. and South Korean officials.
South Korean officials say Russia is also helping North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs in another way: Earlier this year, Moscow used its veto power on the U.N. Evidence of a nuclear program.
In recent weeks, Kim Jong Un has visited arms factories and encouraged workers there to increase production. North Korean state media also showed Kim Jong Un visiting a large warehouse filled with missile launch vehicles. South Korean analysts said the images were aimed at attracting Russian President Vladimir V. Putin to visit North Korea by showing him the weapons he desperately needs.
Shared interests prompted Kim and Putin to meet in Russia’s Far East last September. Putin subsequently promised to visit North Korea.
In recent weeks, North Korea has complained strongly about joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises and its “hostile aerial espionage activities.” North Korea’s Deputy Defense Minister Kim Kang-il said in a statement on Saturday that such activities “have become a source of escalating military tensions in the region.”
