If North Korea tested a nuclear weapon it would only isolate itself further from the international community, South Korea's foreign minister said on Monday, adding any such move would be "reckless". U.S. media reports have indicated that Pyongyang may be preparing its first nuclear test while stalling on its return to talks aimed at curbing its nuclear ambitions. "If North Korea takes the reckless action of conducting a nuclear test, it will further deepen its isolation and take itself on a road where its future would not be guaranteed," Yonhap news agency quoted Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon as telling a forum on Monday. The chairman of the ruling Uri Party, Moon Hee-sang, played down the chances such a test would be conducted any time soon. "According to my latest intelligence information and sources, we have not detected any movement on a nuclear test happening in North Korea," he told reporters later on Monday. Three rounds of so-called six-party talks involving the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, China and Russia have failed to make progress on dismantling the North's nuclear programmes. --More 2326 Local Time 2026 GMT
