Ukrainian media reports 500 North Korean soldiers killed in Kyiv’s missile strike on Kursk
A Ukrainian media outlet has reported that about 500 North Korean soldiers were killed in a missile strike by Kyiv in Russia's western Kursk region.
North Korea said on Tuesday that its latest attempt to launch a new rocket carrying a military reconnaissance satellite ended in failure due to the midair explosion of the rocket during the first-stage flight this week.
Vice General Director of North Korea’s National Aerospace Technology Administration (NATA) said that the rocket carrying the satellite, the Malligyong-1-1, exploded after it lifted off from the Sohae Satellite Launching Ground on the country’s northwest coast on Monday, Yonhap news agency reported, citing the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
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The launch came just hours after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese Premier Li Qiang held a trilateral summit in Seoul and reaffirmed their commitment to promote peace on the Korean Peninsula.
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“The launch failed due to the air blast of the new-type satellite carrier rocket during the first-stage flight,” the KCNA reported, citing the NATA official.
A preliminary examination by experts from the North’s launch preparatory committee concluded that the “accident” was attributable to the operational reliability of a new “liquid oxygen plus petroleum” engine, the official said.
The other causes of the failure will also be examined, according to the KCNA.
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