North Korea has warned that any attempt by the US to interfere with its newly launched spy satellite would be considered an act of war.
Pyongyang said any interference would result in the elimination of US spy satellite capabilities, according to state media KCNA which cited a statement from North Korea’s defence ministry.
The statement read: “In case the US tries to violate the legitimate territory of a sovereign state by weaponizing the latest technologies illegally and unjustly, the DPRK will consider taking responsive action measures for self-defence to undermine or destroy the viability of the US spy satellites.”
DPRK stands for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea – the country’s official name. Pyongyang added that any interference would be seen as a declaration of war.
The isolated state said that it successfully launched its first spy satellite on November 21 in violation of a ban on ballistic missile testing.
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Pyongyang claimed to have taken photos of US military infrastructure over Japan, the territory of Guam and the mainland US. The country also claimed it took satellite photos of the White House.
The North’s statement followed remarks by Sheryll Klinkel, a public affairs officer for the US Space Forces that were carried in Radio Free Asia, a US government-funded news service, earlier in the week.
Asked whether the United States can block the operation of North Korea’s spy satellite, the RFA report quoted Klinkel as saying that “Joint Force space operations could deny an adversary’s space and counter-space capabilities and services using a variety of reversible and irreversible means, reducing the effectiveness and lethality of adversary forces across all domains.”
North Korea’s satellite launch has inflamed animosities between the two Koreas, with the rivals taking steps to breach a previous military agreement meant to ease front-line military tensions.
After a years-long detente, tensions on the Korean Peninsula have soared with the US and South Korea launching massive military drills earlier this year – the US stations 28,500 troops in South Korea.
Spy satellites are among the high-tech weapons systems that Kim Jong Un has publicly vowed to introduce. Since 2022, North Korea has conducted about 100 ballistic missile tests – part of efforts to modernize its arsenal of weapons targeting South Korea and the United States. South Korea and the United States have expanded their military exercises.
Washington responded to the launch of the spy satellite with fresh sanctions on North Korea while South Korea blacklisted 11 North Koreans it said were involved in satellite and ballistic missile programs.
Yesterday, South Korea launched its first military spy satellite into space from California. It is the first of five spy satellites South Korea plans to send into space by 2025 under a contract with SpaceX.
