North Korea’s space program is administered by a state-run civilian agency, the National Aerospace Development Administration. North Korea’s space launch complex on the west coast, the Sohae Satellite Launching Station and associated space tracking facilities in Pyongyang both supported satellite launch cycles in 2012 and 2016. An older space launch site on the east coast has not been used for a launch since 2009.
Similar to Iran, North Korea will try to deny an adversary use of space during a conflict. North Korea has demonstrated non-kinetic counterspace capabilities, including GPS and satellite communication jamming. North Korea also has ballistic missiles and space launch vehicles that can reach orbit and could, in theory, be used to target satellites in a conflict.
Although North Korea placed two satellites in orbit and has in the past articulated further space ambitions, their program enabled them to test technology used in ballistic missiles under the guise of peaceful use of space. These systems provided North Korea with valuable data applicable to the development of long-range, multistage ballistic missiles.
