The government has urged North Korea to stop preparation for an intercontinental missile test.

A government official said Saturday that on numerous occasions, he expressed Seoul's position to high-ranking North Korean officials who visited Gwangju for an inter-Korean festival marking the sixth anniversary of the 2000 inter-Korean summit.

Seoul warned that if Pyongyang pushes ahead with the test, Washington and Tokyo will further strengthen pressure on the North and that inter-Korean relations will suffer.