A rocket launched by North Korea to deploy the country's second spy satellite has exploded shortly after liftoff, in a setback for leader Kim Jong-un's hopes to operate multiple satellites to better monitor the US and South Korea.
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Monday's failed launch came hours after leaders of South Korea, China and Japan met in Seoul in their first trilateral meeting in more than four years. It is highly unusual for North Korea to take provocative action when China, its major ally and economic pipeline, is engaging in high-level diplomacy in the region.
The launch drew rebukes from the North's neighbours because the United Nations bans North Korea from conducting any such launches, viewing them as covers for testing long-range missile technology.
The North's official Korean Central News Agency said it launched a spy satellite aboard a new rocket at its main northwestern space centre. But KCNA said the rocket blew up during a first-stage flight soon after liftoff due to a suspected engine problem.
KCNA cited the unidentified vice director of the National Aerospace Technology Administration as saying that a preliminary examination showed that the explosion was related to the reliability of operation of the newly developed liquid oxygen-petroleum engine. He said other possible causes will be investigated, according to KCNA.
Japan's government briefly issued a missile warning for the southern prefecture of Okinawa, urging residents to take shelter inside buildings and other safer places. The warning was lifted later because the region was no longer in danger, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said.
North Korea has steadfastly maintained it has the right to launch satellites and test missiles in the face of US-led military threats. North Korea says the operation of spy satellites will allow it to better monitor the US and South Korea and improve the precision-striking capabilities of its missiles.
Earlier on Monday, North Korea had notified Japan's coast guard about its planned launch with a warning to exercise caution in the waters between the Korean Peninsula and China and east of the main Philippine island of Luzon during a launch window from Monday through to June 3.
The failed satellite launch is a blow to Kim's plan to launch three more military spy satellites in 2024 in addition to his country's first military reconnaissance satellite that was placed in orbit last November.
The November launch followed two failed liftoffs.
In the first attempt, the North Korean rocket carrying the satellite crashed into the ocean soon after liftoff. After the second attempt, North Korea said there was an error in the emergency blasting system during the third-stage flight.
Australian Associated Press
