The nations involved in the second round of six-way talks over the Korean Peninsula are hoping for substantial results this time around.  

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the United States, the major parties concerned with the six-way talks, and China, the host country, have agreed to resume the next round of six-way talks on February 25 after having a series of discussions,'' the KCNA news agency released Tuesday.

Republic of Korea (ROK) Deputy Foreign Minister Lee Soo-hyuck, who led his nation's team during the first round of talks, was quoted by the Yonhap News Agency as saying "it may be difficult to have big expectations for a breakthrough from the (second round) talks, but the position of each party will become clearer."

Lee said that if the parties concerned can agree to form a "working group" during the second round of multilateral talks, it would be a "success." The working group of experts can handle more substantial and technical aspects of the issue, he said.

Moreover, ROK Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun said the second round of six-nation talks should see more progress than the first session, reported Yonhap.

Jeong made the remarks while meeting with Kim Ryong-song, a top delegate of the DPRK team during inter-Korean ministerial talks. The DPRK delegation arrived in Seoul yesterday afternoon for the four-day 13th Inter-Korean Ministerial Meeting.

Kim, the DPRK's cabinet counselor, said during the meeting that "our agreement to the six-party talks is a product of our efforts to resolve the nuclear issue peacefully."

"It also means that our position is right and just," he added.

The date for a second round of talks was given after months of intensive shuttle diplomacy since the first six-party session ended without progress in August. The talks may be clouded by revelations that the father of Pakistan's atomic bomb had confessed to selling nuclear secrets to DPRK, as well as Libya and Iran.

Asked about the talks, Japan's top government spokesman, Yasuo Fukuda said: "I am hoping for progress. It would be good if we could resolve all the problems. "

Russia's Itar-Tass news agency quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov as saying Moscow had yet to receive official confirmation of the dates, but expected to be notified soon.

On Monday, US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage said in Tokyo that the stalemate was a "dangerous and unstable situation."

In a meeting with Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Yukio Takeuchi Tuesday, Armitage agreed that Japan, the United States and the ROK had to continue to cooperate to achieve a peaceful solution to the issue.

(China Daily February 4, 2004)