MOSCOW, December 1 (RIA Novosti) - North Korea said on Saturday it will launch a "working satellite" later this month, sparking protests from neighboring South Korea.
The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), quoting an unidentified spokesman for the North's Korean Space Technology Committee, said the launch will be made between December 10 and 22.
South Korea called the launch announcement a "grave provocation," and a "challenge to the international community."
Pyongyang launched an Unhua rocket carrying a satellite in April, but the launch was a failure.
North Korea's neighbors are alarmed by its rocket tests which they say demonstrate its ambitions to deploy long-range missiles. North Korea has previously tested nuclear weapons.
