N. Korea busy near launch pad, but suspected missile yet to be mounted: source

By Sam Kim

SEOUL, Feb. 24 (Yonhap) -- North Korea appears to be setting up radars and assessment equipment but has yet to mount a suspected long-range missile at a launch pad on its east coast, a South Korean source said Tuesday.

The communist state said earlier in the day it is preparing to launch a rocket
that would carry a satellite into space. U.S. and South Korean officials believe
the North may be getting ready to test-fire its longest-range missile, the
Taepodong-2.
An earlier version of the missile, which is theoretically capable of reaching
Alaska and Hawaii, crashed soon after takeoff in a July 2006 launch. South Korea
said the North has taken additional measures to fix the glitches.
"The North appears to be installing radars and measuring equipment that would
monitor the course and impact point after the missile is launched," the source
said, citing a flurry of activity at the Musundan-ri missile base.
"The missile, believed to be a Taepodong-2, has yet to be set up at the launch
pad," the source said, anticipating the North will likely exhibit more clear
moves soon.
North Korea conducted its first known atomic test in 2006, but neighbors play
down the likelihood of the country having developed the technology to tip a
missile with a nuclear warhead.