North Korea on March 16 announced that it will launch a rocket mounted with an Earth observation satellite in mid-April. It insists that every nation has a right to pursue peaceful use of outer space. But given its nuclear weapons program, it is not far-fetched to suspect that the launch is really a test of a long-range ballistic missile.
The launch, scheduled between April 12 and 16, follows a failed satellite launch in April 2009, in which a three-stage rocket flew over Japan and fell into the Pacific Ocean after flying more than 3,000 km. It is predicted that, this time, the first stage will fall into the sea west of South Korea and the second stage, east of the Philippines — about 3,000 km from the launch site near the Yellow Sea.
North Korea's announcement came slightly more than two weeks after Pyongyang and Washington reached a deal under which the North would implement a moratorium on nuclear tests, long-range missile launches, and uranium enrichment activity at its Yongbyon nuclear facility. In return, the North Koreans agreed to let International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors monitor the moratorium on uranium enrichment and reactor disablement at the facility. The U.S. would proceed with a 240,000-ton package of food aid.