Russia has information on North Korean plans to launch a ballistic missile but does not know when it will take place, Interfax news agency quoted a senior Russian military source as saying today.
The news comes as South Korea's defence minister said the North's recent moves were linked to leader Kim Jong-il's succession plans, and as world powers at the United Nations edged towards an agreement on how to punish Pyonyang.
North Korea has angered the region and beyond in the past few weeks with missile launches, threats to attack the South and a nuclear test, prompting US and South Korean forces to raise a military alert on the peninsula to one of its highest since the 1950-53 Korean War.
Cranking up tension, Russia's military said it had information on plans for another missile launch.
"We have certain information about the type and characteristics of the missile. However, we do not have accurate data on the timing," Interfax news agency quoted a senior military source as saying.
South Korean Defence Minister Lee Sang-hee, meanwhile, linked the North's threats and flurry of military activity to Kim Jong-il paving the way for his son to succeed him.
"Kim Jong-il is bloodshot in the eyes trying to build a succession plan to pass on power by creating tension ... while ignoring the desperate plight of his starving people and the impoverished state of the economy," he said in an address to troops, according to a military aide today.
"The North Korean regime is an unethical, irresponsible and inhumane group which puts its own survival ahead of the lives and happiness of the people."
Reuters