South Korea is considering a test-launch of a ballistic missile with a range of 800 kilometers, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Friday, unveiling the test plan of the missile the country is developing to guard against North Korea's advancing missile threats.

   "We are reviewing a plan to do a launch into the international sea south of the Korean air defense identification zone (KADIZ) and the island of Ieodo," Maj. Gen. Yang Byung-hee of the JCS said during a parliamentary audit. 

   His comments were in response to New Politics Alliance for Democracy Rep. Kim Kwang-Jin's query, "Do we have space to launch an 800 km-range missile?" 

   It was the first time the military has suggested a test-launch plan for the missile, which the country has been developing to cope with North Korea's advancing nuclear and missile capacities. 

   The remarks indicate the military is close to completing the development of the ballistic missiles.

   A missile with that range would fly south of Ieodo, a South Korean-controlled submerged rock in the Yellow Sea, if it was launched from the military's test site along the west coast in South Chungcheong Province. 

   Following its agreement with the U.S. to extend the range of local ballistic missiles in October 2012, the South Korean military has developed and tested another ballistic missile, the Hyunmoo-2B, in June, which has a range of 500 km. (Yonhap)