North Korean State Affairs Committee Chairman Kim Jong-un (center) celebrates after a new type of Chollima-1 rocket with a reconnaissance satellite on board, called Malligyong-1, takes off from the satellite launch site Sohae, in Tongchang-ri, northwest North Korea, at 10:42 p.m. on November 21, 2023, in this photograph published the next day by the North’s Korean Central News Agency ( KCNA, according to its acronym in English). (Exclusive use within South Korea. Partial or total distribution prohibited)
SEOUL, Nov. 22 (Yonhap) — North Korea on Wednesday released photos of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un celebrating with North Korean engineers and officials the successful launch of a spy satellitewhich has been condemned as a violation of multiple resolutions of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
The North’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) published photos of Kim and the Chollima-1 space rocket, hours after Pyongyang claimed to have successfully placed the Malligyong-1 reconnaissance satellite into orbit. , On tuesday night.
The photos showed Kim, dressed in a coat, watching the launch from a distance. In a group photo with engineers, dressed in white uniforms and hats, Kim is seen raising his right hand, in an apparent sign of celebration for the launch.
Kim’s daughter, believed to be Ju-ae, who had recently accompanied her father to key inspections, did not appear in the photos. Key officials, such as Kim Yo-Jong, the influential sister of the North Korean leader, were also not photographed.
Experts said the rocket seen in the photographs appeared to have an identical design to that used in the two failed launch attempts, in May and August, respectively. Multiple lines of rocket columns were observed, an indication that the rocket was powered by multiple motors grouped together.
The rocket was covered with various logos and lettering, including the words “National Aerospace Technology General Office (NATA)”, “Malligyong-1 reconnaissance satellite” and “Chollima-1” in Korean.
The rocket was also inscribed with a logo with the English acronym “NATA,” showing that North Korea’s national aerospace agency has been elevated to that status from the previous National Aerospace Development Administration.
Tuesday’s launch came hours before the start of a 10-day launch window that the North had informed to Japan previously as a security alert, saying it could launch a space rocket carrying a satellite sometime between this Wednesday and December 1.
Pyongyang promised to launch several more satellites “in a short time” in order to ensure its reconnaissance capabilities against the South.
Seoul and Washington condemned the latest launch rocket as a violation of multiple UNSC resolutions, which prohibit any test employing ballistic missile technology.
The photo, provided by KCNA on Nov. 22, 2023, shows the launch of the Malligyong-1 reconnaissance satellite on a new type of Chollima-1 rocket the previous day at 10:42 p.m. from Tongchang. -ri, in North Pyongan Province. (Exclusive use within South Korea. Partial or total distribution prohibited)
This composite image of photographs provided by KCNA shows, on the left, the new logo of the National General Office of Aerospace Technology (NATA), and the previous logo, which read National Aerospace Development Administration (NADA). (Exclusive use within South Korea. Partial or total distribution prohibited)
elias@yna.co.kr
(FIN)
2023-11-22 15:38:03
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