The White House on Thursday confirmed that officials from the United States and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) met and held direct talks in New York last Friday and the US side urged the DPRK to return to the six-party talks.

Working-level contacts between the United States and the DPRK were held in New York, White House spokesman Trent Duffy said.

"This channel was used to reiterate the message directly that the North Koreans need to return to the six-party talks without conditions so we can pursue a policy of a nuclear-free peninsula," he said.

On May 10, State Department spokesman Tom Casey said: "The New York channel obviously exists and it remains open, and we'll use it when we deem it appropriate, as we have in the past."

However, "it's not a negotiating channel, it's not a replacement or substitute for the six-party talks," Casey said.

On Nov. 30 and Dec. 3 of last year, the United States and the DPRK had two rounds of talks in New York over the resumption of the six-party talks designed to solve the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula.

The six-party talks have been stalled since June last year as the DPRK accused the United States of adopting a hostile policy towards Pyongyang. 

(Xinhua News Agency May 20, 2005)