Japan has ordered its air force to prepare for activation of its missile defence system, in order to destroy a North Korean rocket if it passes through the country's airspace, dpa quoted local media as reporting Friday. Defence Minister Naoki Tanaka was reportedly deliberating whether to station PAC-3 missile defence equipment in the southern island province of Okinawa, where it is thought most likely the Korean missile could enter airspace. North Korea said last week it planned to launch an observation satellite, the Kwangmyongsong-3, borne by the Unha-3 rocket, between April 12 and 16 to mark the centenary of the birth of its founder, Kim Il Sung, on April 15. Japan and the United States were among the countries which condemned the planned launch, voicing concerns it could be used to test ballistic missile technology. Japan has felt particularly threatened by the hermit state's weapons testing since it tested a long-range rocket in 1998, which flew over Japan before landing in the Pacific Ocean. It began building spy satellites, several of which are already in orbit, and applied sanctions to the communist regime in Pyongyang after its 2006 nuclear weapons test.
