Seoul, Apr 12 (EFE).- North Korea on Wednesday praised the development of its space projects and reiterated its aim to become a “world-class space power,” amid concerns that Pyongyang is preparing to launch a military satellite.
On the International Day of Human Space Flight, which is commemorated every Apr. 12 on the anniversary of the first space flight in 1961 by the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the regime praises the “rapid progress” made in space science and technology in an editorial published by state news outlet KCNA.
The text says that North Korean space development projects are “actively progressing” in line with the Outer Space Treaty, an international agreement to which North Korea is a signatory and which stipulates that a sovereign state has the right to use space resources for peaceful purposes.
In this sense, the editorial assures that North Korea is determined to become “a world-class space power” since “the universe belongs to all mankind, not a specific monopoly or possession of any country.“
“Space, which brings great benefits to mankind, can be developed and used only through space instruments including artificial earth satellites, so many countries are launching satellites for different purposes into outer space,” including developing countries, the text says.
“As long as there is the wise leadership of the great Party and a strong team of talented people in science and technology, our cause of building a superpower in space will surely be realized with brilliance,” it concludes.
It is widely believed that Pyongyang may be preparing to launch its first military reconnaissance satellite into orbit.
After launching a test device in December that obtained black-and-white photos of the South Korean cities of Seoul and Incheon, the regime announced it would try to launch the spy satellite by April.
No preparations have been observed that point to an imminent launch from the Sohae space base, from where Pyongyang launched its Kwangmyongsong-4 satellite in 2016, an action that was condemned by the UN Security Council considering it a covert test of ballistic missile technology.
No one has ever succeeded in detecting signals transmitted from either of the two satellites that North Korea has apparently succeeded in getting into orbit. EFE
asb/tw
