The Unification Ministry says Seoul has spotted no unusual movements in North Korea.

Ministry spokesman Kim Ho-nyoun told a regular news briefing Thursday that the North Korean government is continuing to operate as usual. Kim said that Pyongyang sent a birthday telegram on behalf of Kim Jong-il to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday, and North Korean top officials are attending the mass gymnastics performance Arirang festival as usual.

Defense Minister Lee Sang-hee also said no unusual troop movements or power shifts in the North Korean military have been spotted since mid-August, the time when North Korean leader Kim Jong-il reportedly suffered a stroke.

In Pyongyang, North Korea’s five major government agencies pledged allegiance to their leader Kim Jong-il.

The agencies include the Workers’ Party, the Central Committee, the Central Military Commission, the National Defense Commission and the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly.

They made the pledge in a congratulatory message sent to Kim on Tuesday to mark the 60th birthday of the North Korean government.

In the message, they said that Kim Jong-il is North Korea and its future, and the country's fate lies with him.