Japan is preparing for the worst-case scenario in the situation relating to North Korea, as the reclusive country is escalating its war rhetoric.

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga now says “We are working to ensure that we can protect our people even in the worst possible situation,” Suga made the statement at a news conference.  He says Japan’s taking every possible measure to collect information and collaborate with other countries, even as North Korea prepares to launch a mid-range missile that could reach Japan, and even farther to the U.S. territory Guam.

According to North Korea’s state media, the country said the same day that it will notify the United States of its readiness to launch nuclear attacks. It has also redeployed missiles to its coast of the Sea of Japan, which separates Japan from the Korean Peninsula.  Suga says Japan must be prepared, and “Under cooperation between Japan, the United States and South Korea, we have full knowledge of the situation.”

“We understand every development (in North Korea) by collaborating with the United States and South Korea,” Suga told reporters, as Pyongyang has reportedly moved what appears to be a mid-range missile to its east coast facing Japan. “It is extremely regrettable they repeat provocative acts.”

The top government spokesman said Tokyo is braced for the “worst-case scenario,” he said, adding China and Russia can play “significant roles” in defusing tensions surrounding North Korea, which announced this week it will restart a nuclear reactor that can produce weapons-grade material in defiance of international resolutions.

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