The North Korea crisis

North Korea threatens to destroy US spy satellites 

North Korea threatens to "destroy" US spy satellites if the US tries to attack any North Korean space assets, reports AFP.  

 

A spokesman for North Korea's Ministry of Defense said, according to state news agency KCNA, that such a move would be seen as a declaration of war.  

 

The statement comes after the US commented on North Korea's newly launched spy satellite that Washington could use various means to prevent the adversary's capabilities. 

 

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South Korea responds: Has launched its own spy satellite  

 

South Korea has successfully placed a military spy satellite into orbit for the first time, the country's Ministry of Defense announced, according to the Korea Times. The launch took place via a Space X rocket from a military base in California, USA.  

 

The whole thing can be seen as an intensification of the space race on the Korean Peninsula, according to AFP. North Korea announced as recently as last week that it had put its own spy satellite into orbit.  

 

South Korea has long depended on US help to obtain high-resolution satellite images that provide clues about its neighbour's nuclear weapons development, but now has its first source of information of its own.

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