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On Monday, May 29th, Japan put its ballistic missile defenses on alert and said it would shoot down any projectile threatening its territory. This was a response to North Korea’s statement of a planned satellite launch between May 31st and June 11th, this according to Reuters. North Korea claims it completed its first military spy satellite, and leader Kim Jong Un has approved final preparations for the launch.

Analysts say that the new satellite is part of a surveillance technology program that aims to improve North Korea’s ability to strike targets in wartime. This launch would be North Korea’s last step in a series of missile launches and weapon tests in recent months.

Japan’s defense ministry stated it will take destructive measures against any ballistic and other missiles that are confirmed to land in its territory. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters that any North Korean launch would violate U.N. Security Council resolutions condemning its nuclear and missile activity.

South Korea’s domestically made rocket delivered a satellite into orbit for the first time last week, while North Korea has attempted multiple times to launch “earth observation” satellites, two of which seem to have been successful.

This April Japan sent a destroyer to the East China Sea, carrying the SM-3 interceptors that can hit targets in space, and sent ground-based PAC-3 missiles, designed to strike warheads closer to the ground, to the Okinawan islands.