SEOUL — In a new dare to the United States and its allies, North Korea has notified the UN agency responsible for navigation safety that it is planning to launch a long-range rocket this month to put a satellite into orbit.

The agency, the International Maritime Organization, said Tuesday that it had received a notification from the North Korean authorities of a multistage rocket launch between the hours of 7 a.m. and noon local time, on an as-yet unspecified day between Monday and Feb. 25. An agency spokeswoman, Natasha Brown, said North Korea’s notification described the payload as an Earth observation satellite.

The notification followed warnings to North Korea advising against a launch from the United States and allied nations, which consider such a step a cover for developing an intercontinental ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear bomb. North Korea is barred by a UN pact from developing nuclear weapons or ballistic missile technologies.

North Korea insists its rocket program is aimed at launching satellites for weather data and other scientific purposes.

New York Times