Seoul [South Korea], November 23:South Korea moved to suspend on Wednesday part of a military agreement it signed with Pyongyang in 2018 after the isolated North defied warnings from the United States and its allies and launched a spy satellite, calling it a success.
North Korea said it placed its first spy satellite in orbit on Tuesday and vowed to launch more in the near future. Photographs published by North Korean state media showed what appeared to be leader Kim Jong Un watching the fiery launch of a rocket from a base.
Officials in South Korea and Japan, which first reported the launch, could not immediately verify whether a satellite was in orbit. Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said the U.S. military was still assessing whether the launch was a success.
South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo hosted a cabinet meeting on Wednesday and said in televised remarks the government was moving ahead to suspend part of the inter-Korean pact.
President Yoon Suk Yeol is in Britain for a state visit and earlier led a meeting of the National Security Council with some ministers and the national intelligence chief by video link.
The pact, known as the Comprehensive Military Agreement and aimed at de-escalating tensions in the Korean peninsula, was signed at a 2018 summit between former South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation