Failure or Portent

North Korea Rocket: Success is less important than the launch

Photo (8/4/2012) shows the rocket for launching Kwangmyongsong-3 satellite installed on the launch pad in Tongchang-ri base. [Xinhua] 

The much publicised launch (and subsequent failure) of the 90 tonne Unha-3 rocket from the Tongchan-ri missile base on the western coast near the city of Sinuiju by North Korea (reported by space-travel.com) lays open one of the key issues within the realm of Space Law: what to do with a rogue state that is intent on pursuing an aggressive space programme? 

Space Law & International Law Issues

Clearly the international community view the North Korean rocket launch as having little to do with a spirit of scientific exploration and more to do with the development of a delivery system for tactical nuclear weapons. Viewed in this light the launch can be seen as a violation of UN Resolution 1874. This resolution, by virtue of Chapter VII of the UN Charter, and taking measures under its Art. 41 decides inter alia that North Korea shall "shall suspend all activities related to its ballistic missile programme and in this context re-establish its pre-existing commitments to a moratorium on missile launches". According to expressbuzz.com, to counter this, North Korea has claimed that the launch was for peaceful purposes and that the rocket-mounted satellite is to mark the birth centennial April 15 of the country's founding father Kim Il-sung.

Space Law & Space Reality

The launch has been condemned by near neighbours South Korea and Japan. Even China, the most significant ally of North Korea urged restraint "from all sides". The United States, in the form of White House Press Secretary Jay Carney released a statement condemning the launch as "provocative" and "a clear breach of international law". Whilst presumably the "international law" contravened was the above mentioned UN resolution 1874, the reality is that no substantive action will result from this launch. What is clear, given the rhetoric used, is that any new discussions on the North Korean nuclear programme remain a distant prospect.

For the North Korean government, the success of the Unha-3 rocket is not, therefore able to be measured in technological terms. Despite claims to the contrary, there is no independently verifiable evidence that North Korea has managed to deploy any satellites in orbit. The Unha-3 rocket broke up after only one minute of flight, travelled 70 miles and didn't even make it to staging. As has been pointed out by U.S. Security Officials, this rocket launch was less successful than the launch of the Kwangmyongsong-2 rocket, which was launched in 2009 and travelled approximately 2,000 miles.

What the launch does demonstrate, however, is that despite the death of the dictator Kim Jong-il in December 2011, North Korea remains committed to an aggressive military programme and in particular the development of a ballistic missile system. International and Space Lawyers are once again forced to contemplate the impotence of existing legal frameworks to combat a rogue nation which decides to deploy space technology in furtherance of military aims.