A man watches a television screen showing a news broadcast with file footage of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un, at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul on May 31, 2023.
Jung Yeon-je | Afp | Getty Images
North Korea’s first attempt at launching a military spy satellite resulted in failure on Wednesday, with South Korea’s military picking up wreckage after the carrier rocket crashed into its western waters.
North Korea’s state media agency, the Korean Central News Agency, said that an “accident” occurred during the launch of a military reconnaissance satellite.
“The carrier rocket ‘Chollima-1’ fell to the West Sea of Korea after losing thrust due to the abnormal starting of the second-stage engine after the separation of the first stage during the normal flight,” it said on the English language version of its website.
The rocket, with a mounted satellite, was launched at 6:27 a.m. local time as it previously announced.
South Korean officials added that they are in the process of recovering “what could be the wreckages from the purported ‘space launch vehicle’ fired by North Korea.”
South Korea, Japan and the U.S. condemned North Korea’s Wednesday morning launch and emphasized that it was a violation of a United Nations security council resolution.
The U.S.’s National Security Council said in a statement: “The door has not closed on diplomacy but Pyongyang must immediately cease its provocative actions and instead choose engagement.”
“The United States will take all necessary measures to ensure the security of the American homeland and the defense of our Republic of Korea and Japanese allies,” it added.
