After North Korea notified Japan of a satellite launch between May 31 and June 11, Japan activated its ballistic missile defences and warned that it would shoot down any projectile that threatened its territory.
Nuclear-armed North Korea claims to have completed its first military spy satellite, and leader Kim Jong Un has approved final launch preparations.
“The government acknowledges that the satellite may pass through our country’s territory,” Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, Hirokazu Matsuno, said at a regular briefing after North Korea informed the Japanese coast guard of the planned launch.
The Japanese defence ministry’s order is the first in response to a North Korean space launch since 2016. Japan sent a destroyer to the East China Sea in April carrying Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) interceptors capable of hitting targets in space, as well as ground-based PAC-3 missiles capable of striking warheads closer to the ground, to the Okinawan islands.
According to a defence ministry spokesperson, Japan expects North Korea to launch a rocket carrying its satellite over the southwest island chain, as it did in 2016.
North Korean state media has slammed rivals South Korea, the United States, and Japan for discussing “sinister measures” to increase military cooperation.
According to analysts, the satellite is part of a surveillance technology programme that includes drones and is intended to improve the country’s ability to strike targets in the event of war.
Kim inspected a military satellite facility in May, according to the North’s KCNA stae news agency.
In recent months, North Korea has conducted a series of missile launches and weapons tests, including the launch of a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters that any North Korean missile launch would be a serious violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions condemning the country’s nuclear and missile activities.
“We strongly urge North Korea to refrain from launching,” his office said on Twitter, adding that it would work with its US ally, South Korea, and other countries to collect and analyse data from any launch.
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