North Korea loads missiles onto launchers

Via CNN

Two medium-range missiles have been loaded onto mobile launchers in North Korea and are ready to be launched, South Korea's semi-official Yonhap news agency reported Friday, citing military sources in Seoul.

A U.S. official with direct knowledge of the information told CNN on Thursday that missile and launch components had been moved to the east coast of North Korea in the "last few days."

The latest Yonhap report said the two missiles have now been hidden in an unidentified facility near the east coast.

In response, South Korea has sent Aegis destroyers equipped with advanced radar systems to both of its coasts, Yonhap said, citing navy sources.

The apparent deployment comes amid further threatening statements by North Korea and heightened tensions in the region -- a situation that "does not need to get hotter," a U.S. State Department spokeswoman said Thursday.

North Korean soldiers gather by the docks in Sinuiju near the Chinese border on Thursday, April 4. North Korea has unleashed another round of scathing rhetoric accusing the United States of pushing the region to the "brink of war." The country may be planning a missile launch soon, a U.S. official told CNN, as tensions mount on the Korean Peninsula. North Korean soldiers patrol along the Yalu River in Sinuiju across the border from the Chinese city of Dandong on April 4. Kim Jong Un is briefed by his generals in this undated photo. On the wall is a map titled "Plan for the strategic forces to target mainland U.S." Kim Jong Un works during a briefing in this undated photo. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspects drills by the Korean People's Army navy at an undisclosed location on North Korea's east coast on March 25 in a photo from the state-run Korean Central News Agency. Kim makes his way to an observation post with North Korean soldiers on March 25. Kim uses a pair of binoculars to look south from the Jangjae Islet Defense Detachment near South Korea's Taeyonphyong Island on March 7. Kim is greeted by the family of a soldier as he inspects Jangjae Islet Defense Detachment near South Korea's Taeyonphyong Island in South Hwanghae province on Thursday, March 7, in a photo from the state-run Korean Central News Agency. Kim is surrounded by soldiers during a visit to the Mu Islet Hero Defense Detachment near South Korea's Taeyonphyong Island on March 7. North Korea has escalated its bellicose rhetoric, threatening nuclear strikes, just before the U.N. Security Council passed tougher sanctions against the secretive nation on March 7. Kim arrives at Jangjae Islet by boat to meet with soldiers of the Jangjae Islet Defense Detachment near Taeyonphyong Island in South Hwanghae province on March 7. Soldiers in the North Korean army train at an undisclosed location on March 6. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, poses with chiefs of branch social security stations in this undated picture released by North Korea's official news agency on November 27. Kim celebrates with staff from the satellite control center in Pyongyang, North Korea, during the launch of a rocket carrying a satellite, in a photo released by the official North Korean news agency on December 12. A crowd watches as statues of the nation's founder, Kim Il Sung, and his son Kim Jong Il are unveiled during a ceremony in Pyongyang on April 13, 2012. Photos from North Korea are rare, but the country was on full display in April 2012 as it celebrated the 100th birthday of Kim Il Sung. A North Korean soldier stands guard in front of an UNHA III rocket at the Tangachai-ri Space Center on April 8, 2012. In April 2012, Pyongyang launched a long-range rocket, which broke apart and fell into the sea. The UNHA III rocket is pictured on its launch pad in Tang Chung Ri, North Korea. A closer look at the UNHA III rocket on its launch pad in Tang Chung Ri, North Korea. A military vehicle participates in a parade in Pyongyang on April 15, 2012. North Koreans wave flags in front of portraits of Kim Il Sung, left, and his son Kim Jong Il during celebrations to mark the 100th birth anniversary of Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang on April 16, 2012. North Korean soldiers relax at the end of an official ceremony attended by leader Kim Jong Un at a stadium in Pyongyang on April 14, 2012. Kim Jong Un applauds as he watches a military parade in Pyongyang on April 15, 2012. A North Korean soldier stands on a balcony in Pyongyang on April 16, 2012. North Korean soldiers march during a military parade in Pyongyang on April 15, 2012. Soldiers board a bus outside a theater in Pyongyang on April 16, 2012. North Korean performers sit below a screen showing images of leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang on April 16, 2012. North Korean soldiers salute during a military parade in Pyongyang on April 15, 2012. Kim Jong Un visits the Rungna People's Pleasure Ground, which is under construction in Pyongyang, in a photo released on July 3, 2012, by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency. North Korean soldiers listen to a speech during an official ceremony attended by leader Kim Jong Un at a stadium in Pyongyang on April 14, 2012. Members of a North Korean military band gather following an official ceremony at the Kim Il Sung stadium in Pyongyang on April 14, 2012. North Korean military personnel watch a performance in Pyongyang on April 16, 2012. A North Korean controller is seen along the railway line between Pyongyang and North Pyongan province on April 8, 2012. A North Korean military honor guard stands at attention at Pyongyang's airport during a diplomatic visit on May 2, 2001. 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How North Korea would attack the South The move of the missile and launch equipment could mean that Pyongyang, which unleashed another round of scathing rhetoric Thursday accusing the United States of pushing the region to the "brink of war," may be planning a missile launch soon.

The components, the official said, are consistent with those of a Musudan missile, which has a 2,500-mile range, meaning it could threaten South Korea, Japan and Southeast Asia.

The United States has been looking for a hidden North Korean east coast launch site or mobile launchers, a concern because a missile launched from the east coast would go over Japan, the official said.

South Korean officials also believe the weapons on the launchers are Musudan missiles, according to Yonhap.

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It is believed a missile launch would be a "test" launch rather than a targeted strike. That is because it appears the North Koreans have only moved the components so far. The United States is waiting to see whether North Korea issues a notice to its airmen and mariners to stay out of the region.

Communication intercepts in recent days also seem to show that Pyongyang might be planning to launch a mobile ballistic missile in the coming days or weeks, another U.S. official said.

Earlier, South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin told a parliamentary committee in Seoul that the North has moved a medium-range missile to its east coast for an imminent test firing or military drill.

The missile doesn't appear to be aimed at the U.S. mainland, Kim said, according to Yonhap.

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Meanwhile, the British Foreign Office said North Korea told British officials that it would not be able to guarantee the safety of diplomats in Pyongyang in the event of conflict.

North Korea has asked the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang to consider a possible evacuation of its staff because of the tensions on the Korean peninsula, the press officer of the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang, Denis Samsonov, told Russian state media.

"The Russian side has taken note of this suggestion. No decision has been made yet," Samsonov said.

Wednesday, the United States announced it was sending ballistic missile defenses to Guam, a Western Pacific territory that is home to U.S. naval and air bases. North Korea has cited those bases when listing possible targets for missile attacks.

The latest developments come amid the disclosure of what one U.S. official calls an Obama administration "playbook" of pre-scripted actions and responses to the last several weeks of North Korean rhetoric and provocations.

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Pentagon officials, while decrying North Korean saber-rattling, said recent announcements of U.S. military deployments in response to belligerent statements by North Korea may have contributed to the escalating tensions between the countries.

As the bombast reaches a fever pitch, the United States is refining its message toward North Korea. The Pentagon now says it is working to decrease the temperature as it maintains a frank and vigilant stance toward Pyongyang's threats.

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Tougher U.N. sanctions in response to those moves, combined with joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises in the region, are given by Kim Jong Un's government as reasons to ratchet up its threats in recent weeks.

Starting Wednesday, North Korea barred South Korean workers and managers from entering the Kaesong industrial complex, an economic cooperation zone that sits on the North's side of the border but houses operations of scores of South Korean companies.

It also repeated a threat from the weekend to completely shut down the complex, where more than 50,000 North Koreans currently work.

The current crisis at Kaesong began a day after North Korea said it planned to restart "without delay" a reactor at its main nuclear complex that it had shut down five years ago as part of a deal with the United States, China and four other nations.

Most observers say the North is still years away from having the technology to deliver a nuclear warhead on a missile.

It has conducted three nuclear bomb tests, in 2006, 2009 and most recently in February. It has said that its nuclear weapons are a deterrent and are no longer up for negotiation.

Many analysts say the increasingly belligerent talk is aimed at cementing the domestic authority of Kim Jong Un.