Global General

Special

Newsmaker

Asia Pacific

America

Middle East

Europe

Africa

Russian space control: DPRK satellite not in orbit

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-04-06 21:01

MOSCOW -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has not placed its satellite into the near-Earth orbit, Russian media reported Monday.

Special Coverage:  DPRK Satellite Launch Related readings:  UN Security Council meets on DPRK rocket launch  China: UN reaction to DPRK launch should be 'cautious'  Satellite launch sparks conflicting claims  Timeline of DPRK missile program

"Our space control system has not registered the placement of the DPRK satellite into orbit. According to our data, it simply is not there," the Interfax news agency cited a high-ranking source with the Russian General Staff as saying.

The DPRK's official media reported Sunday that the country successfully launched a rocket carrying the "Kwangmyongsong-2" communications satellite which entered orbit about 10 minutes after launch.

However, South Korea and the United States said the launch failed to put the satellite into orbit.

The UN Security Council held an emergency session on the DPRK launch on Sunday afternoon at the request of Japan.

The president of the Security Council, Mexican UN Ambassador Claude Heller, told reporters at the end of the closed-door meeting that members of the 15-nation body "agreed to continue consultations to take appropriate actions" in response to the DPRK rocket launch.