Thanks to Paul for pointing out the key difference between testing a missile (for either offensive or defensive military purposes) and launching a satellite.
The point might also be made that all missiles are rockets (a generic term), but it is questionable whether all rockets are launched for the purpose of developing a missile capability.

To add to the discussion about terminology: 'missile'
is a loaded term in which a contestable political judgement is implicit. It tries to short-circuit political argument by simply applying a tendentious label. Other examples are 'terrorist', 'research whaling', 'land improvement', 'self-defence', let alone the different names given to contested territory (eg.
the Falklands versus the Malvinas, Senkakus versus Daioyutai etc.).

All governments and political players use these terms to suit their own political purposes, but what is disturbing in the Japanese case is how the media uniformly and uncritically follows suit (in all the Japanese examples I have given above). One wonders whether in this respect they are simply propagandising agents for the government.

Aurelia George Mulgan
Professor
School of Humanities and Social Sciences University of New South Wales Canberra, Australia http://www.eastasiaforum.org/author/aureliageorgemulgan/