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The 67-metre
(220-ft) tower will be able to accommodate the launch of a
longer-range missile than the rocket test-fired in December
2012. That launch was widely considered successful in putting an
object into space orbit, the Yonhap report said.
North Korea is banned under U.N. Security Council resolutions
from conducting tests that use ballistic missile technology but
has defied international warnings and sanctions to pursue
missile and nuclear programs.
"Our assessment is that the North will use the newly upgraded
Tongchang-ri (missile) launch pad to launch a long-range missile
larger than Unha-3," Yonhap quoted a South Korean government
source as saying.
Unha-3 refers to the long-range rocket fired in 2012 from the
base near its west coast.
The launch is likely to come around the 70th anniversary of the
founding of the North's ruling Workers' Party on Oct. 10, the
source was quoted as saying.
South Korea's Defense Ministry could not immediately confirm the
report but an official said they were seeking to verify it.
North Korea is believed to be developing an intercontinental
ballistic missile (ICBM) but is seen as years away from
deployment. It is also working to miniaturize a nuclear warhead
to mount on a delivery vehicle.
(Reporting by Jack Kim; Editing by Paul Tait)
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