North Korea’s attempt to launch a second military spy satellite into space has failed, months after a space rocket launched by Pyongyang crashed into the sea minutes after launch, an official media report said on Thursday.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has prioritized the development of a spy satellite, saying it is a necessary counterbalance to the growing US military presence in the region.

North Korea’s Central News Agency reported that the National Space Development Administration “conducted the second launch of a spy satellite (Maeljeong-1) by an advanced rocket (Solima-1)” at the Sohae Satellite Launch Site in Solsan County, North Pyongan Province.

The missile’s flight was normal in the first and second stages, but the launch failed due to a fault in the emergency detonation system in the third stage, the company added.

For its part, the National Space Development Administration said it would conduct a third launch attempt in October after investigating the reasons for the failure.

International condemnation

On the other hand, the White House on Thursday condemned North Korea’s attempt to launch a spy satellite.

Adrian Watson, a spokesman for the US National Security Council, said that despite the failure of the effort, the U.N. He considered it a flagrant violation of several resolutions passed by the Security Council and destabilizing the security situation in the region and beyond.

South Korea’s presidential office yesterday addressed a National Security Council meeting on North Korea’s latest missile launch, in which officials lamented the waste of resources on “irresponsible provocations” amid its economic crisis.

President Yun Chok-yul ordered North Korea’s preparations for further military operations, the presidential office added.

For its part, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff announced in a statement that it had detected the launch of what North Korea claimed was a “space missile” at around 3:50 a.m. local time.

Joint chiefs said the missile was fired south from northern Phiongan province and crossed international airspace over the sea west of Evodo, targeting the Socotra reef in the Yellow Sea.

The Japanese government was the first to announce the discovery of the North Korean missile.

It said Pyongyang used banned ballistic missile technology and the missile crossed Japanese airspace near Okinawa.

“North Korea’s latest launch is very complicated from the perspective of ensuring the safety of the affected people and the planes and ships,” Japanese government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno said.

The missile launch comes shortly after the leaders of Washington, Seoul and Tokyo met at Camp David in the US, during which North Korea’s growing nuclear threats were high on the agenda.

In May, Pyongyang launched what it described as its first military spy satellite, the Malegyong-1, but the Sollima-1 missile fell into the ocean minutes after launch.

The United States, Japan and South Korea condemned the failed launch in May, accusing Pyongyang of using technology directly linked to its intercontinental ballistic missile program.