Japan, U.S. pledge close cooperation on DPRK's planned rocket launch

Japan and the United States Thursday pledged close cooperation on the planned rocket launch by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Kyodo News reported, citing a defense ministry official said.

The two nations made the pledge during a 15-minute telephone conversation between Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada and U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

During the talks, Gates said that the United States, Japan and South Korea are quietly cooperating on DPRK's planned rocket launch and should keep such close relations in the future, according to the official.

Hamada, for his part, voiced hope that Japan and the United States will keep calm and close cooperation on the matter.

On March 27, the Japanese government made an unprecedented decision to order its Self-Defense Forces to intercept a rocket the DPRK plans to launch if the launch goes awry.

The DPRK has announced that it is to send up a communication satellite as part of a peaceful space program between April 4 and 8, but countries such as Japan, the United States and South Korea believe that it may in fact plan to test-fire a long-range ballistic missile "Taepodong-2", urging the DPRK to refrain from the launch.