DPRK extends launch deadline

Pyongyang on Monday extended the period for its planned rocket launch by a week to Dec 29 because of technical problems.

Observers said the Democratic People's Republic of Korea has felt mounting pressure from the international community in the past 10 days since it announced the launch, and has shown more prudence.

The Kwangmyongsong-3 satellite had been scheduled for launch between Monday and Dec 22 at the Sohae Space Center on a Unha-3 carrier rocket, with Pyongyang saying it would fully comply with international rules during the launch.

But the DPRK's official KCNA news agency on Monday quoted a spokesman for the Korean Committee for Space Technology as saying the delay was due to a technical deficiency in a rocket engine module.

The unnamed spokesman said the hitch was found in the first-stage control engine module of the rocket carrying the satellite.

Wang Junsheng, a researcher in East Asian studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said Pyongyang is placing growing emphasis on external affairs.

"It must have made a necessary evaluation of the various responses from the international community after sending the message about the December satellite launch," Wang said.

The extended deadline was announced after Pyongyang said on Saturday its scientists and technicians are "seriously examining the issue of readjusting the launching time of the satellite for some reasons".

"The new launch plan is viewed as a double-edged sword for the country, and Pyongyang's decision to postpone the deadline displays both technical and diplomatic prudence," Wang said.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Monday called for joint efforts to safeguard peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula in response to Pyongyang's plan to extend the launch deadline.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said at a daily news conference that Beijing has noted the DPRK's announcement, and China's stance on the issue remains consistent and clear.

"We hope all sides concerned will make joint efforts to safeguard peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula as well as in the region," Hong said.

In 2009, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 1874, allowing wider sanctions against the DPRK after its May 25 nuclear test. The resolution banned all weapons exports from the DPRK and most arms imports into the country, authorized UN member states to inspect the DPRK's sea, air and land cargo, and required them to seize and destroy any goods transported in violation of the sanctions.

The DPRK rejected the resolution in regard to its rocket launch on April 13, when it launched a Kwangmyongsong-3 to mark the 100th birthday of DPRK founder Kim Il-sung. The long-range rocket crashed into the sea after traveling a short distance.

Xinhua contributed to this story.

Contact the writer at zhangyunbi@chinadaily.com.cn