The foreign ministers of China and the Republic of Korea (ROK) agreed Friday to make efforts for the early resumption of the stalled six-party talks aimed at resolving the dispute over Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s nuclear programs, a ROK official said.

Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing and ROK Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Ban Ki Moon are also concerned that the situation would worsen if North Korea takes "an additional measure," the official said.

The official did not elaborate, but Li and Ban were probably referring to reports that DPRK may test a nuclear weapon or reprocess old fuel rods by shutting down a graphite-moderated nuclear reactor in the Yongbyon site.

Li and Ban met on the sidelines of foreign ministerial talks of Asian and European countries, which began in Kyoto on Friday.

After the talks, Li told reporters, "We'll keep in contact with North Korea and make efforts for the early resumption of the six-party talks."

Li said restarting the talks early "would be of benefit to all parties concerned and lead to denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and peace and stability" in the region.

Six countries -- North and South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia -- held the third round of talks in June last year but a fourth round failed to take place in September after DPRK refused to attend, citing the "hostile" US attitude toward it.

Late last month, US President George W. Bush said he would continue to try to resolve the issue diplomatically through the six-party framework.

But Bush also said that the United States will consider "consequences" together with other parties to the talks, including referring DPRK to the UN Security Council, should DPRK leader Kim Jong Il continue to refuse to resume the talks.

(China Daily May 7, 2005)