China appreciates the contribution of the Republic of Korea (ROK) to promoting the process of the six-party talks, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao in Beijing Tuesday.

ROK Unification Minister Chung Dong-young told journalists in Seoul on Monday that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) proposed a five-step plan to abandon its nuclear weapons programs at the last round of six-party talks last week.

Chung Dong-young said under the proposal, the DPRK presents

such steps as suspension of nuclear tests, bans on nuclear relocation, bans on further nuclear production, verifiable stoppage of nuclear activities and dismantlement, and a return to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and International Atomic Energy Agency inspections.

China, the DPRK, the United States, the ROK, Russia and Japan convened in Beijing from Nov. 9 to 11 for the first phase of the fifth round of six-party talks on Korean Peninsula nuclear issue.

According to the Chairman's Statement issued at the closing ceremony of the meeting, the parties conducted serious, pragmatic and constructive discussions and set forth proposals on how to implement the Joint Statement of the Fourth Round of the Six-Party Talks.

Liu told a regular news conference that all relevant parties have raised their proposals during the talks, some of which are worthy of serious consideration and research. "Some proposals are very constructive," he acknowledged.

China appreciates the active and constructive role of the ROK in the process of the six-party talks, believing that ROK's proposal will also be seriously considered and studied by parties concerned, the spokesman said.

Source: Xinhua