SEOUL, South Korea North Korea successfully
fired a long-range rocket on Wednesday, defying international warnings
as the regime of Kim Jong Un took a big step forward in its quest to
develop a nuclear missile.
While the rocket launch will
enhance the credentials of young leader Kim, who took power after his
father Kim Jong Il's death a year ago, it is also likely to bring fresh
sanctions against the country and further complicate relations among
North Korea, its neighbors, and the West.
The United
States, South Korea and Japan were quick to condemn the morning launch,
which they see as a test of technology needed to mount a nuclear warhead
on a missile that could one day threaten the U.S. West Coast.
Pyongyang says the launch was merely a peaceful effort to put a weather satellite into orbit.
CBS
News correspondent David Martin says ballistic missiles and the rockets
utilized to launch satellites possess similar bodies, engines, and
technology. So peaceful or not, the North Korean's launch was a step
forward in the regime's goal of developing the ability to deliver a
nuclear payload.
