SEOUL—North Korea launched a multistage rocket Friday morning, in another defiance of pressure from countries that want it to stop pursuing advanced weapons.

The rocket took off at 7:39 a.m. local time from a new launch facility in the country's northwest corner and flew south over the Yellow Sea on a path toward Japan's Ryuku Islands, the Philippines, Indonesia and Australia.

A soldier stands guard in front of the Unha-3 (Milky Way 3) rocket sitting on a launch pad at the West Sea Satellite Launch Site, during a guided media tour by North Korean authorities in Pyongyang on April 8.

The event wasn't televised on live TV. South Korea's Ministry of National Defense confirmed the launch.

The rocket's first stage fell into waters near the South's Jeju Island, according to South Korean media reports.

The second stage was expected to carry the rocket another 2,000 kilometers and separate in an area above water east of the Philippines. The third stage was to carry the rocket into space, according to North Korea's plans.

North Korea, since announcing the launch last month, portrayed it as attempt to send a satellite into space and said it was timed to coincide with celebrations of the 100th anniversary on April 15 of the birth of the country's founder, Kim Il Sung.

But the U.S. and other countries viewed the launch as a disguised test of long-range missile technology and urged North Korea not to go through with it.

Though normally very restrictive about visitors, North Korea invited about 50 foreign journalists into the country earlier this week to see the rocket and satellite.

Leaders of other countries in recent weeks urged North Korea not to proceed with the launch, saying it violated restrictions imposed by the United Nations Security Council after previous launches and weapons activities.

U.S. President Barack Obama, in a visit to Seoul two weeks ago, said North Korea would likely have to endure tougher economic sanctions if it went ahead.

"Every time North Korea has violated a Security Council resolution it's resulted in further isolation, tightening of sanctions," Mr. Obama said. "I suspect that will happen this time as well."

Other U.S. officials said the launch would force it to halt a plan announced on Feb. 29 to provide food assistance to North Korea, which was linked to a promise of a moratorium on weapons tests and other development activities.

Pyongyang has argued that its officials made clear during their negotiations with the U.S. that it would promise not to test a missile but not agree to restrictions on the launch of a space vehicle.

On Tuesday, South Korea's Unification Ministry, the agency in charge of dealing with the North, made one final plea, attempting to portray the event as a bad deal for most of the North's impoverished citizens. "We strongly urge North Korea to live up to the demands of the international community and stop its missile launch plan, thereby choosing a path towards saving its people's lives," the ministry's statement said.

Earlier, South Korean officials estimated North Korea had spent approximately $850 million on the development and launch of the rocket, money that could have been used to purchase food in a country where aid workers estimate one-fourth of the population is chronically malnourished.

The event was the fourth time North Korea has launched a multistage rocket. On two of the previous occasions, it portrayed the launch as a rocket aimed at space and on the other as a long-range ballistic missile.

North Korea has said its previous rocket launches—in 1998 and 2009— successfully carried satellites into space. But no physical or radio trace of them has been found by space authorities in other countries.

space authorities

purplefood wrote:Australia?
If there was a country that probably couldn't manage an invasion of Britain, Australia would likely head the list...
Or New Zealand which frankly would be even funnier to watch...

nomsheep wrote:Call the hamster army!!!! or frazzled. time to invade the u.s North Koreans.

Nom

Chowderhead wrote:Why can't we just turn NK into a red smear, again?

I'm sure not many people would mind. Just send in the Dachshundkrieg and grab a steak sauce gun.

Or, you know, actually put sanctions on them.

Witzkatz wrote:South Korean and Japanese surveillance comfirmed that the missile malfunctioned and broke down into pieces which crashed into the sea. The general crash "site" is now analyzed or at least looked upon by a SK navy detachment.

Manchu wrote:On a slightly related note, what do people think about Japan having an army again? Soon, I mean. ASAP even.

Chowderhead wrote:Why can't we just turn NK into a red smear, again?

Manchu wrote:On a slightly related note, what do people think about Japan having an army again? Soon, I mean. ASAP even.

Squigsquasher wrote:Japan needs no army, it has giant robots!

.

Insurgency Walker wrote:Long term....they should build more KIA's (or VW Beatles).

nomsheep wrote:Japan, the country that controlled china and most of the nations around it last time is just gonna become lapdogs for the west?