Japan ends destruction order over N. Korea launch, unaware of orbit

TOKYO, April 6 Kyodo - Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada on Monday terminated the order he gave to the self-Defense Forces to intercept and destroy the North Korean rocket that flew over Japan without incident the previous day.

The Japanese government, meanwhile, has yet to confirm whether a satellite,
which Pyongyang claims was on the rocket, has entered orbit around Earth or is
transmitting data from space as asserted by North Korea, Chief Cabinet
Secretary Takeo Kawamura said.
Vice Defense Minister Kohei Masuda separately made similar remarks, adding that
the government has also received relevant information from the United States
about the rocket launch.
''We have received the same information NORAD and NORTHCOM have announced,''
Masuda told a news conference, referring to a press release issued by the North
American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command following the
rocket launch.
In the release, the military authorities suggested that the launch ended in
failure because the rocket and its payload fell into the Pacific Ocean after
its first stage splashed into the Sea of Japan.
Based on this and other information, including Tokyo's inability to confirm the
radio signals transmitted from a communications satellite as claimed by
Pyongyang, the Japanese government ''has no understanding that a satellite is
orbiting Earth as announced by North Korea,'' Masuda said.
Meanwhile, a Patriot Advanced Capability-3 antiballistic missile battery
deployed on the exercise field at the Defense Ministry in central Tokyo began
withdrawing to its base outside the capital on Monday evening.
The units deployed in northeastern Japan and around Tokyo to intercept the
rocket or its debris are expected to follow suit in the coming days, according
to the ministry's Air Staff Office.
The SDF did not attempt an interception on Sunday because the rocket or debris
from it did not appear to be falling toward Japan and threatening damage to the
lives and property of Japanese people, the ministry said.
The first stage of the rocket, launched Sunday morning from North Korea's
northeastern region, apparently fell harmlessly into the Sea of Japan about 280
kilometers off the coast of Akita Prefecture and the rest flew over
northeastern Japan toward the Pacific Ocean, it said.
Hamada issued the order late last month to intercept the rocket or its debris
in the event it appeared to be falling toward Japanese territory due to launch
failure.
Aegis destroyers equipped with antiballistic missile interceptors were deployed
to the Sea of Japan, and Patriot guided-missile batteries were deployed to
Akita and Iwate prefectures and in and around Tokyo to be ready for an
interception.
The order was issued on the basis of Article 82-2 of the SDF law, under which
the SDF can be authorized in advance to destroy a ballistic missile or similar
objects in case they would fly toward Japan due to a sudden situational change.
The provision was invoked for the first time. The order was good until Friday,
but the defense minister rescinded it early because the rocket has already been
launched and the risks of it coming to Japan disappeared, Masuda said.
==Kyodo