A leading Japanese daily says North Korea hinted to diplomats stationed in Pyongyang that it will launch a missile toward the East Sea as early as Wednesday.

The Sankei Shimbun reported Tuesday that a number of sources said the North dropped the hint last Friday when it recommended foreign embassies in Pyongyang consider evacuating. North Korea said it made the recommendation so embassies could prepare for what it called unpredictable circumstances that could arise following a missile launch.

The North has reportedly moved a Musudan missile to the east coast and Japan has ordered its Self-Defense Forces to intercept North Korean missiles if they are fired toward Japanese territory, waters or airspace. A Musudan missile has a range of between 25-hundred and four-thousand kilometers.