US negotiator in China to push Six-Party Talks

The US chief negotiator to the Six-Party Talks arrived in Beijing yesterday afternoon from Tokyo, seeking fresh co-operation with Asian counterparts to bring Pyongyang back to the table.

Christopher Hill, US assistant secretary of state, last night held talks with Vice-Foreign Minister Wu Dawei, the top delegate on the Chinese side, and is scheduled to meet with assistant foreign ministers Cui Tiankai and He Yafei today.

The two sides will talk about the ways to resume nuclear talks as well as bilateral relations, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang yesterday.

According to the schedule, Hill will fly to Southwest China's Chengdu today and head to Guangzhou on Friday before going to Shanghai on Saturday.

He will then head to Seoul, capital of the Republic of Korea, the last leg of his new round of shuttle diplomacy.

Hill's last visit to China was in July, after Pyongyang drew international attention by test-firing several missiles.

His current visit to the region comes amid concerns Pyongyang could be considering conducting a nuclear weapons test.

Hill was quoted as saying that he had no new information on a possible test by Pyongyang, but warned such a move could further destabilize the region.

Meanwhile, reports of a possible trip to China by Kim Jong-il, leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, were rejected by Qin.

"As far as I know there is no such arrangement for him to visit," Qin told reporters at a regular briefing in Beijing.

Newspapers from the Republic of Korea said Kim may have crossed the border into China yesterday, which would coincide with Hill's visit, to discuss the possibility of resuming the talks.

The speculation came as the United States has continued to ask China to put pressure on Pyongyang to return to the negotiation table.

The spokesman yesterday explicitly reiterated China's opposition to sanctions.

"China is opposed to sanctions, which will achieve exactly the opposite of what we want," Qin said.

He said China insists that the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula should be brought about through diplomatic dialogue.

He said the six-nation talks are an effective mechanism to solve the issue, urging all concerned parties to show sincerity and flexibility to push the talks forward.

The last round of the Six-Party Talks ended in November without agreement. The parties involved signed a declaration in September 2005 calling for a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula.

The talks have since been stalled with Pyongyang refusing to return unless Washington lifts financial sanctions.

In another development, Qin announced that Zhang Yan, director-general of the Arms Control and Disarmament Department of the Foreign Ministry, would attend a meeting on the Iran nuclear issue in Berlin on Thursday.

He said China believes the meeting will help promote the international community's efforts to resume talks on the Iranian nuclear issue and achieve the goal of a peaceful solution.

Source: China Daily