The National Security Council will convene an emergency meeting if North Korea follows through with its plan to fire a rocket.

A government official said President Lee Myung-bak will preside over the meeting to discuss countermeasures of related ministries if North Korea does indeed launch a rocket. The meeting will also discuss preparatons for U.N. Security Council sanctions against the North.

The official added that it is difficult to predict the exact launch date at this time, but the government expects it could be as early as this weekend.

Both South Korean and U.S. national security authorities are said to have opened up communication channels and entered a state of emergency as the launch seems imminent.