Pyongyang [North Korea], May 30:Yesterday, the Japan Coast Guard said it had been informed by North Korea of a plan to launch a satellite from May 31 to June 11, according to Kyodo News.
North Korea's first military reconnaissance satellite has been completed and leader Kim Jong-un has approved final preparations for the launch. North Korea established maritime warning zones in the Yellow Sea and the waters east of the Philippines during the aforementioned period.
Japan suspects North Korea of ??using ballistic missile technology (which is banned by the UN Security Council) for the upcoming launch. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida instructed ministries to prepare for the unexpected, while Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada ordered self-defense forces to shoot down any missiles that land on Japanese territory. Japan's PAC-3 missile defense systems have been put on alert.
On the same day, South Korea's Foreign Ministry warned sternly and called on North Korea to withdraw its satellite launch plan if it does not want to pay the price and suffer. Nuclear negotiators from South Korea, the United States and Japan had a phone call during the day and agreed to cooperate in a stern response if North Korea carried out a launch plan they deemed "illegal," according to Yonhap.
North Korea did not immediately respond to the moves of South Korea, the United States and Japan. In another development, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported yesterday that Pyongyang decided to convene the 8th Plenary Meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea . in early June. The meeting was held to review the implementation of the national economic plans for the first half of 2023 and discuss important policies. On the same day, KCNA quoted North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Pak Sang-gil as saying that Pyongyang is ready to hold high-level talks with Tokyo if Japan changes its stance on pending issues, such as the Japanese citizens were sent to North Korea. Prime Minister Kishida recently expressed his desire to start high-level talks with North Korea to arrange a summit between the two countries.
Source: ThanhNien Newspaper
