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North Korea carried out “another important test” towards the development of a reconnaissance satellite, state media said Sunday, but analysts warned it was a thinly-veiled ballistic missile launch, just days before South Korea elects a new president.
From hypersonic to medium-range ballistic missiles, Pyongyang test-fired a string of banned weaponry in January and last week launched what it claimed was a component of a “reconnaissance satellite” — although Seoul described it as another ballistic missile.
North Korea is under biting international sanctions for its nuclear weapons programs, but peaceful satellite launches are not subject to the same level of restrictions — although they use much of the same technology.
The development of a military reconnaissance satellite — along with the hypersonic weapons tested in January — is officially one of Pyongyang’s key defence projects, as outlined by leader Kim Jong Un last year.
“The DPRK National Aerospace Development Administration (NADA) and the Academy of Defence Science conducted another important test on Saturday under the plan of developing a reconnaissance satellite,” KCNA news agency said, using the acronyms of the North’s official name.
“Through the test, the NADA confirmed the reliability of data transmission and reception system of the satellite, its control command system and various ground-based control systems,” it added.
South Korea said Saturday that it believed the test — which came just days before the country votes to elect a new president on Wednesday — was a ballistic missile launch.
Pyongyang has doubled-down on leader Kim’s drive to modernise its military as it ignores US offers of talks and threatens to abandon a self-imposed moratorium on testing long-range missiles and nuclear weapons.
“Since satellites and ICBMs are the same inside…
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Source : france24
