Storms May Brew, But in N. Korea Pride Over New Satellite

In an “important special broadcast”, state-run Korean Central Television announced that the country had launched an Earth observation satellite and successfully put it into orbit.

While it only managed a rather muted expression of “regret” over the North’s rocket launch, it was quick to voice its “deep concern” at the prospect of South Korea introducing the USA missile system.

North Korea under leader Kim Jong Un has pledged to bolster its nuclear arsenal unless Washington scraps what Pyongyang calls a hostile policy meant to collapse its government. He added that the 15-nation council “restated their intent to develop significant measures in a new Security Council resolution in response to the nuclear test” in January, as well as Sunday’s rocket launch.

The United States hopes to deploy the THAAD missile defense system to South Korea “as quickly as possible” and the two countries will begin formal discussions on the matter “in the next few days”, the Defense Department said Monday.

North Korea has repeatedly conducted nuclear tests and missile launches. South Korean officials told Yonhap they believe “key parts of a long-range missile from Russia” went into the construction of this rocket.

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea – a.k.a. North Korea – has taken a major step forward in its nuclear weapons program, apparently launching a long-range, intercontinental missile that could conceivably deliver nuclear payloads all the way to the mainland of the United States.

“The cost of this launch alone, estimated to be close to US$1 billion, would have fed the entire North Korean population for a whole year”, he said. Although Beijing said North Korea’s missile launch was “regrettable”, it avoided any strong denunciation of Pyongyang.

An emergency UN Security Council meeting was due to take place on Sunday in NY to discuss whether an global response is required.

Missile experts said the THAAD system is regarded as an effective defense against short- and medium-range missiles, meaning it could protect South Korea from attack but would be of little use against long-range strikes, such as a missile aimed at the United States.

The rocket was launched from North Korea’s west coast only two hours after an eight-day launch window opened Sunday morning, its path tracked separately by the United States, Japan and South Korea. For South Korea’s president, and other world leaders, it was a banned test of risky ballistic missile technology and yet another “intolerable provocation”.

Big questions remain about the reliability and accuracy of any weapon the North Koreans might be able to put together, wrote Lewis, who is the director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies.

“If North Korea has only nuclear weapons, that’s not that intimidating”.