North Korea Claims Spy Satellite Pictured White House, Pentagon

Facts

• North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Tuesday reported that Pres. Kim Jong Un personally reviewed images of the White House, Pentagon, and key US military installations, which were captured late Monday by its military reconnaissance satellite Malligyong-1.¹
• Seemingly trying to prove the authenticity of the unreleased photos, KCNA claimed that four US Navy nuclear-powered carriers and one British aircraft carrier were spotted at the Norfolk Naval Station and the Newport News Dockyard. But information on in-port locations is publicly available online.²
• This comes as North Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations, Kim Song, defended his country's right to launch a spy satellite at the Security Council on Monday, complaining that 'no other nation in the world' faces restrictions on satellites.³
• The Security Council, whose permanent members have long been divided on issues related to North Korea, was holding an open meeting on the launch of the Malligyong-1, which used banned ballistic missile technology.⁴
• The indigenous satellite has been confirmed in orbit since last week after two previous unsuccessful launch attempts, making it North Korea's first reconnaissance satellite. Pyongyang intends to launch several more satellites soon to assess 'valuable real-time information' about its rivals.⁵
• Meanwhile, South Korea plans to launch its own first military reconnaissance satellite using a SpaceX Falcon rocket from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base. The launch, first scheduled for Thursday, has been tentatively rescheduled for the weekend due to weather conditions.⁶

Sources: ¹Korea Herald, ²New York Post, ³Al Jazeera, ⁴NK News, ⁵38 north and ⁶The Daily Beast.

Narratives

• Anti-North Korea Narrative, as provided by The Guardian. For the sake of propaganda, North Korea has once again destabilized the security situation on the peninsula. Malligyong-1's launch further exposes that Pyongyang has been able to consistently bypass international sanctions on its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programs. More must be done to contain North Korea.
• Pro-North Korea narrative, as provided by KCNA. With Malligyong-1 in orbit, North Korea has bolstered its self-defense capabilities and war deterrence amid a deteriorating security environment featuring Pyongyang’s enemies conducting dangerous military actions in the Korean Peninsula. No one can deny North Korea's right to self-defense.

Predictions