Amid growing threats from North Korea, South Korea successfully launched its first indigenous military spy satellite from a US military base in California on Friday (local time), Yonhap news agency reported citing South Korea's defence ministry on Saturday. It reported that the satellite was launched with the help of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base. As South Korea has relied on U.S. commercial and military assets for high-resolution imagery, it has been pushing to establish an independent military satellite network to gather information on North Korea. Yonhap news agency reported that beginning with an electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) satellite, South Korea plans to send four more synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites into space by 2025 to better monitor North Korea. It reported that the Kill Chain system is a pillar of South Korea's three-pronged deterrence system that also includes the Korea Air and Missile Defence system and the Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation, an operational plan to incapacitate North Korean leadership in the event of a major conflict.

Source: The North Africa Journal December 02, 2023 14:07 UTC