UN Security Council convenes, military surveillance level raised
By Lee Tae-hoon
North Korea’s multi-stage rocket exploded shortly after liftoff, breaking up into 20 pieces and raining debris into waters 100km to 150 km off the west coast of South Korea, officials said Friday.
While the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) convened in New York to deal with the latest North Korean provocation, the South Korean Armed Forces heightened their level of surveillance. Observers predict the Stalinist North may unleash a military attack to strengthen internal solidarity.
Senior defense officials said Pyongyang launched the 100-ton Unha-3 rocket, which it claimed carried a satellite payload, from the Tongchang-ri launch site in the North’s northwest at 7:38:55 a.m.
North Korea also admitted that the much-hyped rocket launch failed to put a satellite into orbit
“Our scientists, technicians and experts are now looking into the cause of the failure," the North's official Korean Central News Agency said roughly four hours after the launch, which was timed for the April 15 100th anniversary of the birth of the North’s late founder Kim Il-sung.
Following a national security council meeting presided over by President Lee Myung-bak, Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan issued a statement condemning Pyongyang.
“The North must be held duly accountable for its action," he said.
He noted that the North’s launch was a cover for developing and testing long-range intercontinental ballistic missiles and a clear violation of UNSC resolutions.
Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said the launch was a clear provocation and military threat not only against South Korea, but also the international community.
“Appropriate sanctions should be taken at the international level,” Kim said in a meeting with U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Sung Kim and James D. Thurman, commander of U.S. Forces Korea.
Defense ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said the rocket exploded after flying for about two minutes and began falling from an altitude of 151.4 kilometers over the West Sea.
“The missile split into two at 7:41:10 a.m.” he said, noting that the Sejong the Great, a 7,600-ton Aegis-equipped destroyer, began tracking it at 7:39:49 a.m. or 54 seconds after liftoff.
"The ballistic missile test-firing ended in a failure," he said.
The spokesman said the military began scouring the sea area for debris from the rocket and has been keeping a close watch over the North for any signs of additional provocation.
Another military official said there were no unusual military deployments in North Korea, but the military has raised its alert level to better prepare for any possibility.
“It is possible that the North will launch long-range missiles or conduct a nuclear test,” he said. “The reclusive regime may also carry out a military attack in an effort to rally internal support.”
In response to the launch, senior U.S. officials said Washington has decided to suspend plans to send thousands of tons in food aid to the North in exchange for a rollback of its nuclear programs.
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said the regime’s rocket launch was a failed effort that nonetheless violated international law and jeopardized regional security.
“Despite the failure of its attempted rocket launch, North Korea’s provocative action threatens regional security, violates international law and contravenes its own recent commitments,” Carney said.
He said the North’s rocket launch would complicate efforts to revive the six-party talks over North Korea's nuclear program.
China, the North’s closest ally and benefactor, said Pyongyang did not provide any prior notification of the rocket launch, which has drawn condemnation from the United States and its allies.
"China was not informed by the North Korean before or after the satellite launch," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin.
Foreign ministers of China, Russia and India urged all concerned parties to remain calm and exercise restraint over the launch, which is estimated to have cost $850 million.
Russia expressed opposition to the adoption of new U.N. sanctions while China underlined the importance of resuming the six-party talks aimed at ending the North’s nuclear program.
Officials here said the North appears to have been making preparations to conduct a third nuclear test by digging a new underground tunnel in addition to two existing ones.
Two previous tests were conducted in 2006 and 2009.
In 2006, the provocative regime carried out its first nuclear test, three months after the test-firing of a long-range Taepodong-2 rocket. The second nuclear test in 2009 came just one month after another rocket launch.
South Korean officials said they cannot rule out the possibility that the North will set off a nuclear device built with highly enriched uranium this time, unlike two previous tests where plutonium was used.