The first working group meeting of the six-party talks on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue will begin here on May 12 as scheduled, sources with the Chinese Foreign Ministry said Monday.

The meeting will be participated in by the six parties, namely,China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), the United States, the Republic of Korea (ROK), Russia and Japan.

Diplomats of concerned parties in Beijing said the Japanese andROK delegations have already arrived here, and the delegations from the United States and the DPRK will arrive here late Monday and Tuesday respectively. The time of Russian delegation's arrivalis not confirmed yet.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said recently thatall related sides regard this meeting as one important step for resolving the issue, and all sides will have in-depth exchange of views on various topics.

Kong said that the conclusion of the meeting will depend on theprocess of the meeting.

Ning Fukui, Chinese ambassador on Korean Peninsula affairs, will act as the representative of the Chinese side to attend the meeting, Kong said, noting that China, as the host country, hopes that all sides will work cooperatively to make good preparation for the third-round of the six-party talks.

During the second round of the six-party talks from Feb. 25 to 28 in Beijing, all concerned parties agreed to forming a working group to prepare for the third-round of the talks, which is expected to be held before the end of June.