The Japanese military went on alert Wednesday, tasked with shooting down any North Korean rocket that might prove a threat, while South Korea warned Pyongyang would pay a “severe price” if it proceeds with the test.
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(Mandarin) “There were two aspects, one was bilateral relations between China and North Korea including all kinds of issues in China and North Korean relations”.
For its part, Pyongyang’s spokesperson said North Korea was simply exercising its “sovereign right” to pursue a space program by launching an earth satellite.
The Ministry of National Defense said that it will take measures to intercept any missiles or debris that may fall on South Korean territory or into its seas should North Korea launch a long-range rocket. If North Korea’s past patterns are any clue, angry warnings by Seoul, Washington and their allies probably will not dissuade a coming launch.
On Tuesday North Korea notified the UN’s International Maritime Organization that it intends to launch an “earth observation satellite” between February 8 and 25.
Police said the damage was done when a bundle, loaded with 30,000 leaflets criticizing South Korean President Park Geun-hye and glorifying Pyongyang’s latest nuclear test, fell onto the rooftop of the house.
Initially, the government also considered the possibility of North Korea launching a missile without prior notice.
Beijing on Wednesday urged restraint over North Korea’s announcement of its launch plans, and expressed skepticism over the USA calls for tough new sanctions.
South Korean intelligence officials have told the New York Times that the North’s previous rocket launch – which put a weather-forecasting satellite into space – was actually a test for a missile that could deliver a 1,300-pound warhead as far as the west coast of the United States. The headline on the screen reads “North Korea plans to launch a missile”.
UN sanctions prohibit North Korea from any use of ballistic missile technology, and such a launch would amount to another major violation of UN Security Council resolutions following its fourth nuclear test last month.
“I emphasize that South Korea and China are closely communicating on the result of Wu Dawei’s North Korea trip”.
“The only way to stop North Korea’s misjudgment is strong United Nations sanctions and for the worldwide community to make it realize that it can not survive unless it abandons its nuclear program”, Park said in a statement to South Koreans read by Kim Sung-woo, senior presidential press secretary, on Thursday.
Proposed restrictions on border trade as well as third parties that do business with North Korea could disproportionately target Chinese companies and banks.
However, if North Korea insists on pushing ahead, “there will be no reason for China to persuade other countries to mitigate the sanctions”, Jin said.
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The announcement angered South Korea and Japan, with both of them threatening to destroy any projectile or debris that falls on their territories.
