N. Korean satellite launch still threat to S. Korea: defense chief

(ATTN: RECASTS headline, ADDS comments in para 5, background throughout; TRIMS)
By Sam Kim
SEOUL, Feb. 24 (Yonhap) -- Whether North Korea launches a satellite or a missile,
South Korea will consider it a military threat because the technology is
essentially the same, Seoul's top defense official said Tuesday.
"Whether it is a missile or a satellite, it is similar technology. In either
case, we believe it is a threatening act towards us and we are preparing to deal
with it accordingly," Defense Minister Lee Sang-hee said at a National Assembly
hearing.
North Korea said earlier in the day that it plans to launch a satellite,
countering outside intelligence that it is preparing to test-fire its
longest-range missile, the Taepodong-2.
The multi-stage rocket is theoretically capable of reaching Alaska and Hawaii
even though an earlier version crashed soon after take-off in July 2006.
North Korea also test-fired a Taepodong-1 missile in 1998, in what it claims was
a successful attempt to place a satellite into orbit.
"North Korea should present clear evidence to back its claim that it is preparing
a satellite," Lee said. "Even after it launches a satellite, I believe the North
should disclose information on it."
South Korea's top diplomat warned earlier this month that either a missile or a
satellite launch would trigger sanctions against North Korea.
"Such behavior by North Korea will only lead to its isolation," Foreign Minister
Yu Myung-hwan said on Feb. 12.
Pyongyang conducted its first known atomic test in October 2006, prompting a slew
of trade and weapons-related sanctions.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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