Vice Foreign Minister Wang Yi was rounding his two-day visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Friday to exchange opinions on holding the next round of six-way talks on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue.

 

Wang Yi talked with DPRK Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Kye-gwan, then met with First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Sok-ju and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Chung-il.

 

Both sides expressed a willingness to make appropriate preparations for holding the next round of talks in a bid to convene the meeting early next year and continue the process of peaceful settlement through dialogue.

 

They agreed the next round of six-way talks is crucial to solving the nuclear issue.

 

Wang said China attaches importance to the DPRK stand, which targets abandoning its nuclear programs, and said the country's reasonable concerns should be addressed.

 

The nuclear issue should be settled with concerted steps, mutual respect and equal negotiation, Wang added.

 

The six-party talks, involving China, the DPRK, Japan, Russia, the Republic of Korea and the United States, is a mechanism set to solve the nuclear issue.

 

The six parties concluded the first round of talks in Beijing at the end of August. It was the first time all the involved countries sat around a table together to discuss a solution since the nuclear issue surfaced late last year.

 

Although no important breakthrough was made in the first round of talks, all the participants agreed to continue the multilateral negotiation.

 

(Xinhua News Agency December 27, 2003)