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| North Korea preparing nuclear test, South Korea says | North Korea preparing nuclear test, South Korea says |
| (34 minutes later) | |
| North Korea may be preparing for a fourth nuclear test, South Korean officials say. | North Korea may be preparing for a fourth nuclear test, South Korean officials say. |
| South Korean Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae told lawmakers there are "signs" of increased activity in the North's main nuclear test site. | South Korean Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae told lawmakers there are "signs" of increased activity in the North's main nuclear test site. |
| A newspaper also quoted a South Korean official confirming activity similar to the North's third test on 12 February. | A newspaper also quoted a South Korean official confirming activity similar to the North's third test on 12 February. |
| This comes amid North Korea's stepped up rhetoric in recent weeks against the US and South Korea. | |
| Mr Ryoo did not elaborate on the specific intelligence. | |
| But when asked about a news report that North Korea had stepped up activity at its underground atomic test site, he said "there are such signs". | |
| Newspaper JoongAng Ilbo quoted an unnamed South Korean official as saying that South Korean intelligence has detected "increased activity of labour forces and vehicles" at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site in the country's north-east. | Newspaper JoongAng Ilbo quoted an unnamed South Korean official as saying that South Korean intelligence has detected "increased activity of labour forces and vehicles" at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site in the country's north-east. |
| "We are closely monitoring the ongoing situation, which is very similar to the situation ahead of the third nuclear test," the official told the newspaper. | "We are closely monitoring the ongoing situation, which is very similar to the situation ahead of the third nuclear test," the official told the newspaper. |
| "We are trying to figure out whether it is a genuine preparation for a nuclear test or just a ploy to heap more pressure on us and the US." | "We are trying to figure out whether it is a genuine preparation for a nuclear test or just a ploy to heap more pressure on us and the US." |
| Embassy warning | |
| The United Nations imposed tough sanctions following North Korea's third nuclear test. Pyongyang responded by stepping up angry rhetoric, including threats to use nuclear weapons and restarting its nuclear reactor. | |
| In recent weeks, the North has shut down an emergency military hotline between Seoul and Pyongyang and stopped South Koreans from working at a joint industrial complex in the North. | In recent weeks, the North has shut down an emergency military hotline between Seoul and Pyongyang and stopped South Koreans from working at a joint industrial complex in the North. |
| On Friday, North Korea warned it would not be able to guarantee the safety of foreign embassy staff in the event of a war. | |
| But some analysts have suggested that the rhetoric is in large part designed to shore up the standing of a young, inexperienced leader, Kim Jong-un, in the eyes of his own people, says the BBC's John Sudworth in Seoul. | |
| On Sunday, the schedule on North Korea's state radio showed a continuing diet of war and retribution, with programmes about biochemical war, nuclear war and military preparations dominating the listing, our correspondent adds. | |
| Meanwhile, Japan's defence ministry said the country's armed forces have been ordered to shoot down any North Korean missile headed towards its territory. |