North Korea says its next spy satellite is heading into space soon

North Korea has notified Japan of plans to launch a satellite by June 4, Japanese media reported on Monday citing the coastguard, after Seoul said Pyongyang was preparing to put another military spy satellite into orbit.

The Japanese coastguard said the eight-day launch window began at midnight on Sunday into Monday, with North Korea’s notice designating three maritime danger zones near the Korean peninsula and the Philippine island of Luzon where the satellite-carrying rocket’s debris might fall, according to the Kyodo news agency.

Officials from the United States, Japan and South Korea agreed in a phone call to urge Kim Jong-un’s regime to suspend the plan, as any launch using ballistic missile technology would violate United Nations resolutions, Kyodo reported.

Nuclear-armed North Korea launched its first reconnaissance satellite in November in a move that drew international condemnation, with the United States calling it a “brazen violation” of UN sanctions.

Experts say that spy satellites could improve Pyongyang’s intelligence-gathering capabilities, particularly over fierce rival South Korea, and provide crucial data in any military conflict.

Seoul said on Friday that South Korean and United States intelligence authorities were “closely monitoring and tracking” presumed preparations for the launch of another military reconnaissance satellite.