N Korea may be preparing missile launch-reports

TOKYO, May 19 (Reuters) North Korea may be preparing to launch a long-range ballistic missile that could reach the United States, Japanese media reports said today, but Japan's government said it did not believe a launch was imminent.

Quoting unidentified South Korean government officials, public broadcaster NHK said satellite pictures showed there have been signs since early this month around a site in northeastern North Korea that pointed to a possible firing in the near future.

Japan's top government spokesman, Shinzo Abe, said he could not comment on specific security issues, but added: ''At the moment, we do not believe that a launch is imminent.'' Foreign Minister Taro Aso said he had received the information but did not elaborate, Jiji news agency reported.

South Korea's defence ministry said it could not confirm the report.

NHK said that the missile appeared to be a Taepodong-2, which previous reports have said has a range of more than 6,700 km (4,200 miles), making it capable of hitting the continental United States with a light payload.

NHK, quoting US government officials, said if the missile was a modified version of the Taepodong-2, it could have a range of 15,000 km, which would cover all of the United States.

Quoting Japanese government sources, Japan's Kyodo news agency also said a launch could be imminent and that the missile was probably a Taepodong-2 but could be the modified version.

US officials have said the North is developing longer-range missiles that could hit the continental United States.

However, a report in March by the California-based Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS), a non-governmental organisation, said that while North Korea was upgrading its mobile missiles, it did not have an operational missile that could hit the continental United States.

Pyongyang is working on a solid-fuel missile, Taepodong-X, with a range of up to 4,000 km that could hit Japan as well as US bases in Guam. North Korea has yet to demonstrate its reliability through a test flight, the CNS report said.

North Korea shocked the world in August 1998 when it fired a Taepodong missile that flew over Japan before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean.

The latest reports comes amid a deadlock in six-party talks aimed at dismantling North Korea's nuclear programmes, and ahead of a visit to China next week by the chief US negotiator to the multilateral talks.

US officials said on Thursday that Washington was open to discussions with North Korea on a peace treaty at the same time as the six-party nuclear talks, but that it must come back to the negotiating table first.

Some experts said there seemed to be at least a slight change in the US emphasis designed to entice Pyongyang back to the table and keep Asia allies from blaming Washington for the moribund diplomacy.

The talks involve the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, Russia and host China.

Reuters SK GC0737