North Korea is ramping up military tensions with South Korea with its move to carry out a long-range missile test, Defense Minister Han Min-koo said Wednesday, as the communist country took a preparatory step to launch a long-range missile.

On Tuesday, North Korea notified international maritime and telecommunication agencies of its plan to launch what it claims will be a satellite sometime between Feb. 8 and 25.

The outside world regards the launch as a cover for the country's test of ballistic missile technology, which is basically the same technology used in launching space vehicles into orbit.

"Military tensions are continuing after North Korea's recent fourth nuclear test," Han said in a meeting with members of a defense policy advisory committee earlier in the day.

"North Korea has further escalated tensions on the Korean Peninsula with its notification of a long-range missile launch at a time when the United Nations is discussing punitive sanctions," the defense minister said. 

In reaction, South Korea and the U.S. will "strengthen capabilities to counter North Korea's nuclear and missile threats," the top defense official said. 

He cited a full-range defense posture against North Korea's provocations and threats as one of the top policy priorities as he opened the meeting. 

The Ministry of Unification, which handles inter-Korean issues, denounced the North Korean move as "a grave challenge to the international community," prodding the nation to drop the plan.

"North Korea should immediately withdraw the launch plan," ministry spokesman Jeong Joon-hee said in a regular briefing. 

"North Korea's declaration of a long-range missile launch, which came while a punitive resolution is being discussed for its fourth nuclear test, is a grave challenge to the international community," he said.

If North Korea does launch a long-range missile, it will have to pay a painful price, Jeong said, referring to "intensive and comprehensive" punitive measures being reviewed. But he did not specify what the "painful price" will be. 

Another government source said North Korea has additionally informed the International Civil Aviation Organization that it will carry out a satellite launch. 

To the ICAO, the North conveyed similar details of the launch plan that it gave to the International Maritime Organization and the International Telecommunication Union, including the time frame and locations the launch would affect.

The North, however, has yet to file a NOTAM, or Notice to Airmen, which a country is required to publish to alert aircraft pilots of potential hazards under an international convention on international aviation.

Those alerts with the international maritime, aviation and telecommunication bodies are designed to give out warning messages ahead of a rocket launch.

Kyodo News of Japan reported the country's defense minister, Gen Nakatani, ordered the military to intercept any North Korean missiles entering Japan's land, air or maritime territory.

The military order will be effective until Feb. 25 and can be extended if needed, according to the news report. (Yonhap)