North Korea needs a ballistic missile to put its first military reconnaissance spy satellite into orbit. Japan ordered its military to prepare to shoot it down.
Preparations include the deployment of destroyers and military units in Okinawa Prefecture. North Korea's state news agency reported Wednesday, Kim Jong Un ordered the launch of his first militaryonnaissance spy satellite without specifying when the launch would take place. In 2012 and 2016, North Korea conducted tests of ballistic missiles that Pyongyang described as satellite launches. Both missiles had flown over the Okinawa area.