Pyongyang 15 Aug (ANA) - North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reviewed plans to fire missiles towards the US Pacific territory of Guam but will hold off, state media said. Although prepared for "the enveloping fire at Guam", the North said it would watch what "the foolish Yankees" do before taking a decision. Last week's threat against Guam escalated the sharp rhetoric being exchanged between the two sides. This latest report points to a pause in the increasingly bitter war of words. South Korea's President Moon Jae-in meanwhile has urged the US not to launch an attack on the Korean peninsula without its consent, saying "no one may decide to take military action without the consent" of the South. The report on state news agency KCNA said Kim Jong-un "examined the plan for a long time" and discussed it with senior military officials. The commander of North Korea's strategic force was now merely waiting for orders "after rounding off the preparations for the enveloping fire at Guam". But, crucially, the report also said that Mr Kim would watch the US before making any decision, signalling an apparent deceleration in the provocative rhetoric.(ANA)

FA/ANA/15 August 2017--------