Washington - The United States is making last-minute efforts to convince North Korea to stop a missile or satellite launch that could come as early as Saturday, according to the US envoy to the region, and he warned the North Koreans should expect consequences if the launch goes ahead as planned.

Ambassador Stephen Bosworth, the State Department's special representative for North Korea, said the United States was pressing its case against the Stalinist regime through a variety of diplomatic avenues.

"We have continued to urge as we urge now of the DPRK not to launch this," Bosworth told reporters in Washington. "Whether it's a satellite launch or missile launch in our judgement makes no difference. It is a provocative act."

Earlier Friday, in Strasbourg, France, US President Barack Obama warned North Korea not to go ahead with its "provocative" plans.

"They should stop the launch," Obama said.

North Korea has said it intends to launch a satellite some time between Saturday and Wednesday. Washington and Seoul suspect Pyongyang is actually preparing to test a Taepodong-2 missilee that could theoretically reach Alaska and carry a nuclear warhead. Its first test of such a missile in 2006 failed.

Bosworth acknowledged the missile launch could prompt a "cooling off period" on the six-party talks that are aimed at getting North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons.

Bosworth said the international community had an "obligation to demonstrate that there are consequences" to any launch, which would be in violation of past UN Security Council resolutions.

He refused to go into details on what those consequences could be, but said the US would work with its partners on the Security Council.

Bosworth, who travelled to Asia last month but was rejected access to Pyongyang, said he was still hopeful the North Koreans would change their mind on the launch.

"Realistic or not realistic, it's still my hope," Bosworth said. (dpa)