Satellite photos suggest North Korea is dismantling rocket launch site, a possible disarmament move

The Sohae launch station is considered a key component of North Korea’s missile-testing capabilities, and was said to have been discussed by Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un at their Singapore summit

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A satellite image courtesy Airbus Defence and Space and 38 North shows the apparent dismantling of facilities at the Sohae satellite launching station, in North Korea. Photo: Agence France-Presse / Pléiades © Cnes 2018, Distribution Airbus DS

Published: 8:17am, 24 Jul 2018Updated: 8:17am, 24 Jul 2018

North Korea has begun dismantling the facilities at its satellite launch station in Sohae, according to an analysis of commercial satellite imagery released on the 38 North website.

The Sohae location has been the main site for North Korean satellite launches since 2012. The testing facilities at the site are thought to play a role in the development of liquid-fuel engines that can also be used in North Korea’s ballistic missile programme.

If the analysis of the satellite imagery is accurate, North Korea may be taking a step toward the disarmament that was agreed upon by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump during a landmark meeting in Singapore on June 12.

After that summit, Trump said Kim had pledged to dismantle a missile site. US officials later confirmed that the site that the US president was referring to was Sohae. However, the lack of visible progress toward that pledge was one factor that soon served to undermine the agreements reached between Kim and Trump.

The images published by 38 North, a US-based website focused on North Korea that is affiliated with the Stimson Center in Washington, were taken by the commercial companies Digital Globe and Airbus Defence and Space on July 20 and July 22, respectively.

In one set of images, it appears that a rail-mounted processing building is being dismantled. This building is where space launch vehicles are assembled before they are moved to the launch pad, according to 38 North analyst Joseph Bermudez Jnr.