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US Military: No North Korea Satellite in Orbit

Sunday, April 5th, 2009
The launch was closely watched and condemned internationally

The launch was closely watched and condemned internationally

The US Military has said that North Korea’s satellite rocket that was launched earlier delivered NO payload into orbit and that stage one of the missile fell into the Sea of Japan and the rest landed in the pacific.

This would indicate that the rocket was either a failure or JUST a test for the Taepodong-2 missile as speculated by Japan, South Korea, and the US originally.

However, North Korea claims that the launch was a success and that the satellite has successfully transmitted data.

The more reliable data would come from the international community – North Korea is a heavy censor and has alot at stake in the case of failure. If multiple countries confirm what the US has stated, then that was most likely the case.

Failure or missile test disguise?

Failure or missile test disguise?

Japan has requested an emergency Security Council session and Barack Obama has condemned North Korea for breaking the rules by testing a rocket that could be used as a long range missile.

It’s already known that Japan, the US, and South Korea will want more sanctions placed on North Korea, but Russia and especially China will either reject or minimalise them if they are too harsh.

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North Korea Launches Satellite Rocket

Saturday, April 4th, 2009
The North Korean missile launch as seen from space

The North Korean missile launch as seen from space

North Korea at the top and South Korea, lit up, at the bottom.

North Korea at the top and South Korea, lit up, at the bottom.

North Korea launched its Satellite rocket at 2:30am GMT on April 5th. The launch has been strongly condemned by the international community.

Barack Obama called on North Korea to not provocate the situation anymore.

Some believe that the ‘Experimental Communications Satellite’ could be used for long range ballistic missiles.

North Korea spends most of it’s GDP on the military. Mobile phones are not allowed and all civilian communication is restricted to their own country, even then having limitations. It’d be interesting to see what ‘peaceful purpose’ the communications satellite has – if any.

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No North Korea Rocket Launch on First Day

Saturday, April 4th, 2009
North Korea isn't rushing it's launch

North Korea isn't rushing it's launch

North Korea did not launch the rocket on the first day that it was due to launch, which leaves 3 more days to go.

The rocket is due to be launched 2am-7am GMT between 4-8th of April. The presumed reason according to a South Korean expert is that there were high winds at the area of the launch site which made conditions not ‘ideal’.

This also shows that North Korea is not rushing the launch, amid worldwide pressure to halt it.

Barack Obama said that North Korea will face ‘action’. (Diplomatic action to be precise.)

“Should North Korea decide to take this action, we will work with all interested partners in the international comunity to take appropriate steps to let North Korea know that they cannot threaten the safety and stability of other countries with impunity,”

Though, to be honest, this will probably pass with North Korea getting another round of diplomatic pressure such as sanctions unless someone decides to blast the rocket, which North Korea warned would result in war. If that scenario actually happened, then North Korea would have Japan, South Korea, and the US against it as they are the main nations involved in opposing the launch.

Though China has an old treaty with North Korea which states that as comrades they will come to the aid of each other. It’s difficult to say what China would do in such a situation but would they risk international criticism and isolation over a nation that is economically destroyed, politically unstable and unpredictable?

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‘Over 190 Aerial Espionage cases’ against North Korea in March

Thursday, April 2nd, 2009
The RC-135 recon planes that have apparently been violating North Korea

The RC-135 recon planes that have apparently been violating North Korea

The official North Korea news agency KCNA has reported that US imperialists and their South Korean ‘puppet military warmongers’  have been ‘massively mobilizing strategic and tactical reconnaissance planes’ for various missions over North Korea in March.

KCNA: At least 190 Cases of Aerial Espionage Perpetrated against DPRK in March

The KCNA ends the article with a stern warning that the planes are within sriking distance.

“The U.S. imperialist warmongers had better bear in mind that RC-135 and all other spy planes perpetrating espionage against the DPRK are within the range of its strikes.”
- KCNA, Official State-run North Korean News Agency

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North Korea rocket being fuelled and has a Satellite attached

Thursday, April 2nd, 2009
Satellite images reveal the North Korean Launch Pad

Satellite images reveal the North Korean Launch Pad in Musudan-ri

North Korea has begun fuelling the rocket which is impending launch to put a communications satellite into space within the next few days, despite international calls for it to halt the launch. Final preparations are being made on the launch site, claims a senior US official.

The rocket will be ready for take off about 3 days after fuelling begins, say experts.

After the last Taepodong test failed, the UN drafted a resolution banning North Korea from ballistic activity, and Japan and the US insist that even Satellite launches are covered in the ban – but what does that matter in the eyes of North Korea..

Pyongyang says it will launch during daylight hours between this Saturday and next Wednesday.

Satellite images of the launch site seem to suggest that the rocket has been fitted with a satellite, coinciding with claims from North Korea that this is a satellite launch and not a missile test, as the US, Japan, and South Korea claim.

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North Korea ‘will shoot down US spy planes’

Wednesday, April 1st, 2009
North Korean Anti-Air

North Korea's Female Anti-Air Operators

North Korea will shoot down US spy planes attempting to spy on the rocket launch expected to take place as soon as this weekend, according to a strong worded broadcast.

“If the brigandish US imperialists dare to infiltrate spy planes into our airspace to interfere with our peaceful satellite launch preparations, our revolutionary armed forces will mercilessly shoot them down”

Missile has rounded tip

The apparently the rocket has a rounded tip which gives more leverage to North Korea’s claims that this is a satellite launch and not a missile test.

Nevertheless, the US, Japan, South Korea, and now the UK are calling for the launch to be halted.

Spy planes?

Why would the US risk sending spy planes over North Korea when they have spy satellites in place? Could North Korea even detect the US spy planes in the first place? Presumably this is just yet more hard rhetoric without backbone – does North Korea really see a need to threatening other nations so vigorously?

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North Korea threatens Japan with war

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009
The North Korean Test Site is prepared for the controversial launch.

The North Korean Test Site is prepared for the controversial launch.

“Should Japan dare recklessly to intercept the DPRK’s satellite, its army will consider this as the start of Japan’s war of reinvasion more than six decades after the Second World War”

These are the strong words posted by the KCNA, Korea’s state owned news agency, that threaten Japan with war if it shoots down the imminent satellite/missile launch that will be pass over Japanese territory.

Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada on March 27 ordered his forces to shoot down any North Korean object entering his country’s airspace and deployed guided-missile units around Tokyo.

This will be interesting to watch unfold, but let’s see if anyone goes through with their overly used strong words. NKL will be eyeing developments on this.

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North Korea has 5-8 Nuclear Warheads

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009
North Korea is assessed to have it's rodong missiles capable of being nuclear armed.

North Korea is assessed to have it's rodong missiles capable of being nuclear armed.

Daniel Pinkston of South Korean think tank International Crisis Group has said that the communist nation has two underground nuclear warhead storage facilities near bases for its medium-range Rodong missiles, which are capable of striking Japan. The North is believed to have five to eight warheads, he said.

But he stressed it is unclear if North Korea has the capability to miniaturize the warheads and put them on Rodong missiles, which have a range of 620 to 930 miles (1,000 to 1,500 kilometers).

Pinkston said he obtained the information from intelligence officials from a country or countries that couldn’t be identified.

They assess that North Korea has deployed and assembled nuclear warheads for Rodong missiles.

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North Korean Missile/Satellite Launch Imminent

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

North Korea is expected to launch a missile between 4th – 8th of April which it claims is to put a satellite in orbit.

The US and Japan are embraced for the imminent launch, which they believe is a cover for a test of the previously unsuccessful North Korean Taepodong-2 missile.

The US has stated that it will not intervene unless it deems it a threat to US territory (such as Hawaii) and Japan has it’s anti-air muscle out for defense purposes. Japan has followed a strict defense-only doctrine since the fall of it’s imperial ideology and shooting it down as an agression would be against the Japanese constitution. The Japanese military will only shoot debris falling towards Japanese territory which is not an unlikely situation as the previous test of the missile failed after a few seconds and the missiles path will actually pass over Japan.

It seems several countries are saying that this is a cover for a missile TEST and not a satellite launch, but what’d be the point of that unless it is using the attention seeking tactic. Can it not test these missiles over it’s own territory and not over other countries territories and possibly their civilian populations?

However, the concept of North Korea launching a harmless satellite is weak seeing as a large portion of its population is suffering from food shortages and the political ideology states that the military comes first. One would assume it’d be a military satellite, but who knows – we can keep guess – this is one of the wonders of the most secretive state in the world.

The likely outcome of this would probably be the usual all-round condemnation of the launch and the international communities grudge over this incident will probably be shrugged off in a short time as they have learned from past experience.

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