North claimed it spends $1.5 billion on a satellite launch, in a report written by Jeong Gang Chol from the North’s Economic Cooperation Council published on Tuesday.

The piece argues that profits from the Kaesong Industrial Complex (KIC) have been used to develop nuclear weapons and improve missile technology is an “embarrassing” distortion.

The report struck back at the South Korean government claims that revenue from the KIC was diverted to weapons programs, saying the time of the first satellite launch was conducted in 1998, two years before the opening of the KIC.

“Our underground nuclear test was conducted in October 2006, and the first product from the KIC was made in December 2006, following the building dedication ceremony in June 2004,” the article reads.

It also compares the $1.5 billion figure to profits from the KIC totalling less than $100 million per year. The salary paid to North Korean workers aligned with the statistics provided by the Ministry of Unification: $100 million last year.

There has been a range of speculation regarding North Korea’s expenditures on the launch, considered a cover for the North’s test of its long-range missile technology, however expert estimates generally tend to be lower than the figure presented by the North’s media.

“It was an exceptional case for the North Korean media to unveil the amount of money used for the satellite launch,” Lee Sang-min, researcher from Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, told NK News.

Kim Dong-yup, professor at Seoul’s University of North Korean Studies, indicated that it is difficult to judge North Korea’s input for the nuclear program and satellite launch due to the different value of currencies and difficulty in calculating labor power.

“Therefore, it is meaningless to pin down whether the profit from the KIC was used for nuclear and satellite. The scale of the facilities and resources calculated by government organizations and institutions vary,” Kim told NK News.

“Experts generally assume approximately $243 million for one nuclear test, but it difficult to suggest an exact amount,” Suh Kune-yull, professor at the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Seoul National University, told NK News.

The cost for satellite launch seems similar. “(About) $225 million is the average price to launch a satellite,” Martyn Williams of North Korea Tech told NK News, citing major commercial launch provider ULA.

Williams assumed that the added cost due to North Korea’s under-developed technology could be offset by the government’s exclusive initiatives and the non-commercial purpose of the satellite.

The South Korean Ministry of Defense has no updated figures on the issue. In 2012, an official from the ministry estimated that $840 million had been earmarked for ballistic missile development.

Former North Korean leader Kim Jong Il also gave lower a number back in 2000.

“It costs $200-300 million per rocket launch,” Kim said, adding approximately $900 million is needed for two or three satellite launches per year.

As for last year, the total amount of revenue flowing into the KIC amounted to $540 million, while $520 million was paid during the conservative administration from President Lee Myung-bak to Park Geun-hye, according to a lawmaker Lee Hae-chan of the opposition Minjoo Party.

Experts generally guessed that about 30 percent of the profits go to the regime, which is equivalent to $162 million over the nine year period.

Previously, President Park Geun-hye said funds from the KIC were delivered to the leadership of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), last week during the speech at the National Assembly.

Minister of Unification Hong Yong-pyo asserted that 60-70 percent of profits from the complex were offered to the WPK’s secretary and Office 39, the department in charge of acquiring foreign currency, on February 14.

One day later, Hong altered his position, citing a lack of evidence, even though that remark was revised by the ministry’s official press release.

North Korea’s criticism against Park and international pressure has been running high since last weekend. Uriminzokkiri devoted 10 pages, equivalent to 1,300 words, to character assassination towards the South Korean President last Sunday.

Seoul’s Ministry of Unification distributed a press release on the same day, calling for ceasing the groundless slander.

Featured Image: DPRK Today