The United States on Friday warned North Korea against testing a ballistic missile, expressing concern about Pyongyang's ambitions but refusing to confirm reports of an imminent launch.
"We're not going to discuss or speculate about intelligence matters. Our concerns about North Korea's missile program are well known," White House national security spokesman Fred Jones told AFP.
"North Korea should abide by the long-range missile test moratorium it has observed since 1999 and return to the six-party talks" aimed at ending the crisis over its nuclear weapons, said Jones.
Jones said North Korea should "negotiate steps to implement" an agreement in principle, made in September 2005, "in which North Korea agreed to abandon all its nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs."
North Korea on Friday accused a US reconnaissance plane of intruding over its territorial space to spy on strategic targets, amid jitters over the Stalinist country's apparent preparations for a missile test.
South Korean and US officials have said that North Korea appears to be preparing to test-launch an inter-continental ballistic missile capable of reaching the mainland United States. North Korea is believed to be developing the missile for a range of up to 10,000 kilometres (6,200 miles).