North Korea’s heavily criticised long-range rocket launch looked set for a lengthy delay yesterday, with reports that the entire rocket had been removed from the launch pad for repair.
New leader Kim Jong-Un is believed to be extremely keen that the launch falls around the first anniversary of the death of his father
According to analysis of the latest satellite imagery, the entire three-stage Unha-3 carrier has been taken down and moved to a nearby assembly facility, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency quoted a military source as saying.
“It seems that North Korea has pulled down the rocket from the launch pad to fix technical problems,” the source said. Local radio and TV stations carried similar reports.
The South Korean Defence Ministry refused to confirm the reports which, if true, would signal a considerable delay in the launch schedule.
North Korea says the rocket is being used to put a satellite into orbit, but the US and its allies insist the launch is a disguised ballistic missile test that violates UN resolutions.
North Korea had originally provided a December 10 to 22 window for launching the rocket, but extended that by another week on Monday when a “technical deficiency” was discovered in the first-stage engine.
Yonhap’s military source said Pyongyang was still expected to go ahead with a launch after repair works are completed. The North’s decision to try and launch the rocket in winter has led analysts to suggest a political imperative behind the timing, which may have overruled technical considerations.
New leader Kim Jong-Un is believed to be extremely keen that the launch falls around the first anniversary of the death of his father and former leader Kim Jong-Il on December 17.
The possibility that the launch has been rushed has been backed by missile experts, sceptical that the problem which resulted in the failure of the North’s last rocket launch in April could have been resolved in just eight months.
North Korea said on Monday that it had experienced especially cold weather in the three days leading to the opening of the launch window on December 10.