Suspicious ground movements in North Korea may reflect maintenance of missile sites rather than preparations for a missile test, according to South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon. U.S. and Japanese officials recently detected signs North Korea was preparing to launch a ballistic missile capable of reaching almost anywhere in Japan. In an interview with Reuters late on Friday, Ban said he understood such movements were continuing. But he added, "We're not quite sure what their intentions are, whether they are to fire missiles or simply maintaining their missile sites." The preparations were noticed after the reclusive communist country refused to take part in a fourth round of six-party talks this month on ending its nuclear ambitions and said it would never forsake its nuclear deterrent. U.S., South Korean and Japanese officials have played down the possibility of a missile test. But Ban said a missile firing will set back cooperation between South Korea, with a vibrant economy, and impoverished North Korea, as well as the six-party process. A missile fired by Pyongyang over Japan in 1998 shocked the world. --More 2232 Local Time 1932 GMT
