NKorea places long-range missile on launch pad

North Korea has placed a long-range missile on a launch pad, a US official has said, as Washington warned it would take the matter to the United Nations if Pyongyang goes ahead with the planned launch.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said a launch for any purpose would be a violation of a UN Security Council resolution.

"We intend to raise this violation of the UN Security Council resolution, if it goes forward, in the UN," Clinton said during a visit to Mexico City.

"This provocative action in violation of the United Nations mandate will not go unnoticed and there will be consequences," she said.

A US counter-proliferation official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP that Japanese press reports that a long-range missile has been placed on a launch pad "are accurate."

The official said the missile was believed to be a Taepodong-2, a long-range missile that could, in theory, reach Alaska.

Two stages of the missile were visible but the top was covered with a shroud supported by a crane, NBC television reported, citing US officials.

North Korea has said it intends to launch a satellite over Japan and into orbit between April 4-8.

But the United States, South Korea and Japan suspect that the planned launch is a disguise for a long-range missile test.

South Korea Thursday described North Korea's planned rocket launch as a "serious challenge and provocation" to regional security.

Defence ministry spokesman Won Tae-Jae declined to confirm the US report, saying Seoul would not comment on intelligence matters.

But he said the communist state is moving forward with preparations for the launch, which would constitute "a serious challenge and provocation" to the security of the Korean peninsula and Northeast Asia.

"North Korea's long-range rocket launch clearly violates UN Security council Resolution 1718. We strongly urge it to stop this immediately," Won said.

On Tuesday, North Korea warned that stalled six-party nuclear disarmament talks would collapse if new UN sanctions are imposed to punish the launch. The forum groups the United States, Japan, Russia, the two Koreas and China.

Japan's security council, meanwhile, will meet this week to prepare for the shooting down of a North Korean rocket if it threatens to strike its territory, Prime Minister Taro Aso said Wednesday.

Japan's government will issue an advance order Friday for the Self-Defense Forces to use its Patriot missile defense system to destroy any missile or debris if it shows signs of falling toward Japan, Jiji Press reported.

North Korea says it would regard any attempt to shoot down its rocket as an act of war.

China, a traditional ally and major donor for impoverished North Korea as well as a permanent UN Security Council member, has not publicly urged Pyongyang to halt the launch.





Naamani