S. Korea: Pyongyang May Launch Third Military Reconnaissance Satellite by Nov. 30

By Takayuki Nakagawa / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

12:57 JST, November 20, 2023

SEOUL — South Korean National Defense Minister Shin Won-sik said Sunday that North Korea may launch its third military reconnaissance satellite by the end of this month.

Shin told a KBS television program that the United States and South Korea are jointly monitoring Pyongyang’s preparations for a satellite launch.

“I suspect [North Korea] will launch a satellite within a week, or by Nov. 30 at the latest,” he said.

Shin provided no details, but said, “It would take a week” to put a rocket on the launch pad and inject liquid fuel at the Sohae Satellite Launching Station in Tongchang-ri, northwestern North Korea.