It is not a double standard because the ROK does not have UN sanctions against developing ballistic missiles. Plus it was a commercial Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX that put the ROK’s spy satellite into orbit. If North Korea would stop being a global pariah and become a responsible nation maybe they would have sanctions dropped to allow them to have their own peaceful space program:
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying South Korea’s first indigenous spy satellite lifts off from U.S. Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Dec. 1, 2023 (local time), in this photo provided by SpaceX. (Yonhap)
North Korea on Monday denounced the United States for having a “double standard” over space programs, saying Washington helped South Korea with launching a military spy satellite, while condemning Pyongyang’s similar move.
South Korea successfully launched its first indigenous military spy satellite atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from a U.S. military base in California on Friday, after North Korea put its spy satellite Malligyong-1 into orbit on Nov. 21.
An unnamed spokesperson at North Korea’s National Aerospace Technology Administration said the U.S. has a “double standard” over South Korea’s spy satellite, as it “brazenly” helped Seoul’s launch, while condemning Pyongyang’s exercise of its sovereign right.
“Coercing the brigandish standard of the U.S. even in the space realm, a treasure common to mankind, should never be permitted,” the official said in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency.
Yonhap
You can read more at the link.
This would be a provocative action by the U.S. Space Force if they did try and disable North Korea’s supposed spy satellite because it would set a precedent for other countries to take action on U.S. satellites as well:
North Korea lashed out at the United States on Saturday after a U.S. space official hinted at possible disabling of the North’s military spy satellite launched last week, saying that it will take it as “a declaration of war” against the regime.
A spokesperson of the North’s defense ministry issued the statement after Sheryll Klinkel, a strategic communicator at the U.S. Space Command, told a media program in reference to the North’s spy satellite that “a variety of reversible and irreversible means” can be employed to “deny” an adversary’s space and counterspace capabilities.
Appearing on the Radio Free Asia earlier this week, Klinkel also said that joint force space operations can reduce the effectiveness and lethality of adversary forces across all domains.
“The U.S. Space Force’s deplorable hostility toward the DPRK’s reconnaissance satellite can never be overlooked as it is just a challenge to the sovereignty of the DPRK, and more exactly, a declaration war against it,” read the English-language statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
Yonhap
You can read more at the link.
This is what I have been saying, that North Korea’s claims of having all this amazing imagery of U.S. military installations is likely just propaganda unless the Russians went and built them their own satellite:
But South Korean military officials are voicing doubts about the satellite’s reconnaissance capabilities.
“Compared to previous attempts, it seems that the new satellite achieved its own technological progress to some extent,” a military official said.
“The North claims that it photographed U.S. aircraft carriers and naval bases in Hawaii just 10 hours after the launch. That is not impossible, but a proper operation of a military satellite requires months of testing, verification and correction. Given this, (the recent KCNA news reports) appear to be propaganda.”
The official said that the military had analyzed the debris of a satellite that the North failed to put in orbit in May, and it had limited operational capabilities and provided very poor resolution images. “It is highly questionable whether North Korea addressed these limitations in a short period,” the official added.
Shin Jong-woo, a senior researcher at the Korea Defense and Security Forum, a think tank, assumed that the satellite would be an entry-level optical one, based on KCNA’s description.
Korea Times
You can read more at the link.
No surprise here, hopefully South Korea in response reimplaces all of their guard posts and fortifications that were removed during the Moon administration to better secure the DMZ:
North Korean soldiers are spotted near a guard post inside of the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas in this photo provided by the South Korean defense ministry on Nov. 27, 2023. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
North Korea has begun rebuilding guard posts and bringing heavy firearms along the border with South Korea after effectively scrapping a 2018 inter-Korean military tension reduction deal, the defense ministry said Monday.
Ministry officials disclosed photos showing North Korean troops installing temporary guard posts, carrying what appeared to be recoilless guns and standing guard at night inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas.
These moves came after the North said last week it would restore all military measures halted under the 2018 tension reduction deal. That decision came after South Korea suspended part of the agreement in protest of the North’s successful launch of a military spy satellite.
“Before destroying the GPs, there were observation posts and they are presumed to be rebuilding them. It was made of white wood and painted with a camouflage pattern,” a senior military official told reporters on background, referring to a guard post seen in a photo released by the defense ministry on Monday.
Yonhap
You can read more at the link.
The North Koreans are gloating about their supposed spy satellite, but the fact they haven’t shown any photos leads me to believe it either doesn’t work or the technology is very old:
North Korea claimed Saturday its leader Kim Jong-un observed photos taken by the country’s recently launched military spy satellite of “major target regions” in South Korea, where U.S. Army bases are located, and parts of Hawaii.
Kim visited the Pyongyang General Control Center of the National Aerospace Technology Administration (NATA) on Friday to “learn about the operational preparation of the reconnaissance satellite” and looked at the aerospace photos, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.
Yonhap
You can read more at the link.
Not happy with their successful satellite launch, the North Koreans apparently decided to increase tensions further by firing a ballistic missile that failed:
A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows the test firing of a new solid-fuel Hwasong-18 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at an undisclosed location in North Korea, April 13. Yonhap
North Korea fired an unspecified ballistic missile toward the East Sea, but the launch appears to have failed, the South Korean military said Thursday.
The North fired the missile from the Sunan area in Pyongyang at 11:05 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
It did not provide other details, adding that South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities are conducting an analysis into the launch.
The latest launch came after South Korea suspended part of the 2018 inter-Korean military tension reduction agreement in response to the North’s latest launch of a military spy satellite.
Korea Times
You can read more at the link.
The South Korean military has confirmed that the North Koreans did put a satellite into space, they just don’t know yet if it actually is transmitting anything:
This photo released by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency shows the launch of a rocket carrying a spy satellite, Malligyong-1, at Tongchang-ri, North Pyongan Province, North Korea, Tuesday. Yonhap
North Korea’s military spy satellite appears to have entered into orbit, but more time would be needed to determine if it is operating properly, Seoul’s military said Wednesday.
The North launched the Malligyong-1 satellite from the country’s west coast late Tuesday in its third attempt this year, claiming it has successfully entered into orbit.
“After a comprehensive analysis of its flight track data and other signs, the satellite is assessed to have entered into orbit,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a text message sent to reporters.
“However, determining whether the satellite is working properly will take time as additional analysis is required under coordination between South Korea and the United States and relevant agencies.”
Yonhap
In response to the satellite launch the ROK announced that it is suspending part of the 2018 Inter-Korean Military Pact they have with North Korea:
Seoul on Wednesday partially suspended an inter-Korean military agreement designed to ease tensions and decided to resume surveillance operations along the border with North Korea in response to Pyongyang’s launch of a spy satellite. The South Korean government said it was a “necessary measure” for self-defense.
At an extraordinary Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said North Korea’s latest provocation ― and violation of the agreement ― shows it has no intention to comply with it.
“A partial suspension of the agreement is a necessary measure for national security and the minimum action for self-defense,” he said after endorsing the proposal. It was subsequently approved in less than an hour by President Yoon Suk Yeol, who is on a state visit to Britain.
Korea Times
You can read more at the link, but there are a few good reasons why the ROK has not completely scrapped the Inter-Korean Military Pact..
It looks like the Russian assistance has paid off with the North Koreans apparently successfully placing a satellite into orbit:
North Korea said Wednesday it has successfully placed a spy satellite into orbit and will launch several more satellites “in a short span of time” to step up its surveillance capability on South Korea.
The state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said that the North launched a reconnaissance satellite called Malligyong-1 on a Chollima-1 rocket from a launch site in Tongchang-ri on the country’s west coast at 10:42 p.m. Tuesday.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un observed the launch at the site and congratulated officials, scientists and technicians associated with the launch preparations, according to KCNA.
“The carrier rocket ‘Chollima-1’ flew normally along the preset flight track and accurately put the reconnaissance satellite ‘Malligyong-1’ on its orbit at 22:54:13, 705s after the launch,” KCNA said in an English-language report.
Yonhap
You can read more at the link, but according to the Joong Ang Ilbo the rocket did fly on the typical southern trajectory that North Korea has used in the past for rocket launches. A J-Alert was issued in Japan’s Okinawan islands, but was lifted after the rocket passed over the islands.
