Military vows to shoot down N. Korea rocket

Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force "Oosumi" carries PAC-3 missile interceptors as the amphibious assault ship sails through Seto Inland Sea off Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture, western Japan, Thursday, to prepare for a planned rocket launch by North Korea. Less than a month after its purported H-bomb test, North Korea announced Tuesday it is planning a rocket launch as soon as next week. / AP-Yonhap

By Jun Ji-hye

The Ministry of National Defense said Thursday that the military was ready to shoot down a North Korean rocket or its debris if they enter South Korean territory.

"The military is strengthening its air defense posture to intercept the North Korean missile or its debris that could fall on our land or in our waters," spokesman Moon Sang-gyun told a press briefing. "In proportion to the level of the possible damage, South Korea will take action under its right of self-defense."

The military has put its Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC)-2 surface-to-air missiles into combat mode to guard against the possibility of a North Korean missile landing in South Korean territory, he said.

Moon added that the interceptor operations will be conducted under the ROK-U.S. joint defense system, indicating that the United States Forces Korea's PAC-3 missiles could also be mobilized, if necessary.

The remark came two days after Pyongyang notified the International Maritime Organization (IMO) of its intention to launch an Earth observation satellite called "Kwangmyongsong" between Feb. 8 and 25.

It is widely believed that the reclusive state is using the launch as a cover for the test-firing of an intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of more than 10,000 kilometers, given that the technologies for both are almost identical. The notification added fuel to already mounting tension in the wake of the North's fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6.

In a letter to the IMO, the North said the first stage of the rocket is expected to fall in the West Sea, the fairing in the East China Sea and the second stage in the Philippine Sea.

Moon noted that the interceptor operations will be conducted if the North's rocket deviates from this projected route into South Korean airspace.

He added, "The ministry believes that the North is preparing to fire a long-range missile from its Sohae Satellite Launching Station in Tongchang-ri. But I can't elaborate on details."

Later in the day, President Park Geun-hye said the missile launch should never be condoned, calling for international efforts to impose stronger sanctions to stop the provocative move.

Pyongyang's planned launch is "a desperate measure to maintain" its regime and shows that it is not afraid of U.N. sanctions, Park said in a statement read by Kim Sung-woo, chief presidential press secretary.

"The only way of stopping the North's misjudgment is strong U.N. sanctions. International society should make the North realize that it cannot survive unless it abandons its nuclear program," the statement said. "The North's plan to fire a long-range missile that follows its nuclear test is an act that poses a serious threat to peace on the Korean Peninsula as well as the world, which should never be accepted."

A day earlier, Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani ordered Tokyo's Self-Defense Forces to destroy the North Korean missile if it enters Japanese airspace, according to Japanese media. Gen told a news conference that Japan has deployed PAC-3 missiles in at least three areas of the country including Tokyo in preparation for the missile launch, according to reports.

The repressive state is believed to have increased the number of 122-millimeter multiple rocket launchers as well as surveillance equipment on its western border, according to a military official.

Follow Jun Ji-hye on Twitter @TheKopJihye

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