By Jack Kim
SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea was on Tuesday reportedly preparing to fire more short-range missiles, a move seen as an attempt to boost its bargaining position ahead of expected talks on ending its nuclear weapons programme.
Analysts say the missiles serve as a reminder of the North's ability to rattle regional security but were not enough to halt growing momentum for dialogue after the reclusive state announced it was willing to head back to the negotiating table.
Yonhap news agency quoted a government source as saying the North had fired five short-range missile of its east coast on Monday and that there were indications of more to come.
"There have been indications that the North is getting ready to fire short-range missiles from the west coast," the source was quoted as saying.
The North has issued a warning for vessels to stay out of its coastal waters during daylight hours from October 12-16, Japan's coast guard said.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, speaking on Monday, said Washington would continue its efforts to end nuclear weapons on the peninsula.
"Our goals remain the same. We intend to work towards a nuclear free Korean peninsula," she told a news conference in Belfast. "Our consultation with our partners and allies continues unabated. It is unaffected by the behaviour of North Korea."
North Korean state media has so far made no comment about the missile launches, which in the past have often been accompanied by strident commentary attacking governments it considers out to do it harm -- notably those of the United States, Japan and South Korea.
"If it is true, then it is very regrettable, but I am not in a position to comment on this any further now," Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said of the missile launches.
South Korean officials played down the launches, saying these were often part of routine military drills.
"The missiles are identical to the ones that had been fired numerous times in the past, so we don't believe there will be problems on holding talks, which will go ahead," Unification Ministry spokesman Chun Hae-sung said.
However, they do coincide with the arrival of aircraft carrier USS George Washington off the South Korean coast. The North usually protests such visits as a "prelude to war."
Local markets brushed off the North's latest moves and financial analysts do not expect a major impact in the absence of direct military conflict.
The latest launches, the first in about three months, come as Pyongyang said it was ready to return to international talks on ending its nuclear arms programme, though it has insisted on holding negotiations first with the United States.
On Tuesday, the North accepted a proposal by the South for work-levels talks on preventing flooding in a major river that flows across their armed border, where a surge of water released by the North killed six people in the South last month.
The North also agreed to hold Red Cross talks on arranging reunions for families separated by the 1950-1953 Korean War, a move that could help warm relations between the two Koreas.
The Unification Ministry said the talks would likely take place this week.
Analysts said the launches were less a security threat than an attempt to gain the upper hand in upcoming talks.
"Bilateral, and possibly multilateral, talks with North Korea are coming up soon, and North Korea is playing all its cards before they happen," said Koh Yu-hwan, an expert on the North's negotiating tactics at Dongguk University in Seoul.
The North has hundreds of short-range range missiles, with the ability to strike the South Korean capital Seoul and its sprawling urban surroundings which are home to around 25 million people.
(Editing by Jonathan Thatcher)
