U.S. Strategic Command on Monday said it continued to track two objects put into orbit by North Korea, the rocket payload or satellite, and the rocket body.
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The US military hopes to send a sophisticated missile defence system to South Korea “as quickly as possible”, the Pentagon said on Monday.
South Korea previously has resisted discussions with the United States about the THAAD missile system because of China’s opposition to it. Cook said the Pentagon and China have not discussed the issue, but he added the Chinese should not take issue with the system.
“We are beginning the consultations now and in the current days with the South Koreans, and we expect that this will move in an expeditious fashion”.
The U.S. and its allies, as well as the United Nations, condemned the launch as a smokescreen to test ballistic-missile technology – defying U.N. sanctions.
The three leaders agreed to rapidly adopt new UN Security Council resolutions against Pyongyang, involving strong and effective measures, sharing another view that the DPRK should pay a harsh price corresponding to its repeated provocations of significance.
There were fears that Kim Jong Un’s country could be using the satellite to spy on other parts of the world. Critics of the project allege that North Korea is using the mission to test a prohibited long-range missile that has the ability to target the US.
North Korea launched another satellite into space on Sunday, drawing condemnation from the global community.
Isolated North Korea’s last long-range rocket launch in 2012 put what it called a communications satellite into orbit, but no signal has ever been detected from it.
“We’re committed to the security of South Korea and that is exactly what this technology is meant to address”.
“The members of the Security Council strongly condemn this launch”, said Rafael Dario Ramirez Carreno, Venezuela’s ambassador to the United Nations.
Thaad missiles are reported to be highly deployable and work by firing anti-ballistic missiles against enemy missiles either inside or outside the Earth’s atmosphere.
Cook stressed that THAAD is a defensive system focused on North Korean threats.
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“However, we need more analysis to determine the capacity, including its exact range”, a defence ministry spokesman told AFP.
