North Korea Satellite Launch
A video still of a North Korean Television KRT news reader announcing the launch of a working satellite to mark the 100th birthday of Kim Il-sung in Pyongyang on 16/03/2012. Reuters

Japan has threatened to intercept any North Korean rocket launched over its territory.

On Friday, North Korea announced that it would launch a satellite mounted on a rocket in mid-April to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of the Communist state's founder, Kim Il-sung.

"We'll strongly seek self-restraint from North Korea," the Salt Lake Tribune quoted Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda as saying.

North Korea indicated that it would be going ahead with the satellite launch and said it had notified international agencies.

According to a report by the state-run Korean News Agency, KCNA, the government has informed the International Civil Aviation Organisation, the International Maritime Organisation and the International Telecommunication Union about the launch.

Also read: North Korea to Launch Satellite to Mark Founder's Birth Centenary

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