US will take NK space capability 'seriously' if it enables war

A new type of Chollima-1 rocket carrying a reconnaissance satellite called the Malligyong-1 lifts off from the launching pad at the Sohae satellite launch site in Tongchang-ri in northwestern North Korea in this Nov. 21, 2023 photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency. Yonhap

The United States will take North Korea's military space capability "seriously" if it has elements enabling the North's ability to conduct warfare, a senior Pentagon official said Wednesday, amid concerns about Pyongyang's pursuit of space-based military capabilities.

Pyongyang has claimed to have successfully launched its first military spy satellite in November and vowed to launch three more this year apparently as part of its efforts to secure space-based intelligence-gathering capabilities.

"As far as the idea of North Korea as a threat from space, if there are things that enable their ability to do a war fight, that is a thing that we take seriously and track and build into our plans," John Plumb, the first assistant secretary of defense for space policy, told reporters.

Plumb was responding to a question about the Pentagon's assessment of the North's space capabilities and how to deter the North's potential space-domain threats.

He highlighted that there is a "host of problems" from North Korea, including its ballistic missile programs and violations of U.N. Security Council resolutions. But he noted that as most nations seek access to space, it is not clear that just launching a satellite constitutes a threat.

"It's also not clear that launching a satellite that may not have capabilities to measure what you can buy in the commercial market constitutes a threat either," he added.

Observers said that the North appears intent to secure intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) assets as it is far behind the allies in ISR capabilities despite its focus on developing an array of formidable weapons systems, including submarine-launched ballistic missiles and tactical nuclear arms. (Yonhap)