“SEOUL -- North Korea has accelerated construction of a launch site for spy satellites in recent months, including the addition of a seaport that could facilitate deliveries of new components from Russia.
The expansion at the Sohae Satellite Launching Station, on the country's west coast, would allow the regime of Kim Jong Un to more quickly receive larger rocket components by sea than the current delivery method via railroad lines, security experts say.
North Korea hasn't commented publicly on the recent expansion at Sohae. The build-out was seen in satellite imagery released in July, according to ICEYE, a satellite-imagery analysis firm. Then, last week, Sohae's new seaport was shown in satellite images to have a docking slip for large vessels, according to a separate analysis published last week by 38 North, a website affiliated with the Stimson Center, a Washington think tank.
The Sohae seaport highlights Kim's ambitions to advance his satellite program with Russian help, security experts say.
Kim has pledged extensive military support to Russia. In return, Russia has repaid him with air-defense systems, drone technology and protection against new sanctions.
But Moscow's help with Kim's satellite technology represents a far more significant military gain in the long term, security experts say. That is because a space-based surveillance system not only improves Pyongyang's reconnaissance capabilities but also makes its long-range missile strikes aimed at the U.S. mainland potentially more precise.
"Russian help alone can reduce a 10-year process to just one or two years," said Yang Uk, a military expert at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, a think tank in Seoul.
North Korea's lack of spy satellites is a sore spot for Kim, who has made cultivating the technology a military priority. A handful of countries -- including Russia and the North's top foes, the U.S. and South Korea -- can build and launch their own spy satellites. Pyongyang's current technology is rudimentary.
In addition to the seaport, Pyongyang has been constructing new buildings, railroad lines and a larger assembly center for rockets at Sohae, according to Martyn Williams, the author of the 38 North report.
Kim has struggled to advance his satellite program and likely sought Russian expertise to troubleshoot problems from the botched attempts, he added.
In 2022, the Kim regime stopped saying its satellites were solely for peaceful purposes and rewrote its space law to allow for military uses of the technology. The United Nations has long banned North Korea from carrying out satellite launches.
Soon after it declared that space-based activity could be pursued for military purposes, North Korea's first two launch attempts failed. Weeks after the botched second attempt in August 2023, Kim met Vladimir Putin at Russia's main spaceport. When Russian media asked if Moscow could transfer space technology to North Korea, Putin gave a curt response.
"That's why we're here," he said. "The North Korean leader shows great interest in rocket technology."
North Korea soon placed its first spy satellite into orbit. Russia helped analyze blueprints and data from the previous failed launches, South Korea's spy agency has said.
Kim outlined an ambitious target for 2024: He announced plans to launch three more spy satellites. Only one was attempted -- and it ended with a fiery disaster.
North Korea hasn't launched another spy satellite since the failure in May 2024. One potential explanation, according to military experts: The Kim regime is in the process of applying Russian technologies to increase the chances of successfully putting many more satellites into orbit.” [1]
1. World News: Russia Aids North Korea Satellite Site. Yoon, Dasl. Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 07 Aug 2025: A6.
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