Chinese President Hu Jintao said on Friday that the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula is at a crucial time.

The emphasis of next step is on resuming the six-party talks at an early date, reaffirming the Sept. 19 joint statement by all parties and taking concrete steps in implementing the joint statement, he added.

President Hu made the remarks in meeting with President of the Republic of Korea (ROK) Roh Moo-hyun on the sidelines of the 14th economic leaders' informal meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) that is slated for Nov. 18-19.

Hu said China and the ROK are committed to realizing denuclearization on Korean Peninsula, safeguarding regional peace and stability and solving the problem peacefully through dialogues.

The Chinese side sticks to promoting peace and negotiations and will continue to make unremitting efforts for the settlement of the issue through dialogues, Hu said.

China is willing to continue to strengthen coordination and cooperation with the ROK to advance the situation toward a sound direction, he added.

For his part, Roh spoke highly of China's efforts for the resumption of the six-party talks, which he said were facing many difficulties.

In order to make progress in the six-party talks, the parties concerned should make decisions, adopt a flexible attitude and stick to settling the issue through dialogues, Roh said.

The ROK side hopes to strengthen communication and coordination with China so as to jointly make contribution to safeguarding peace and stability in Northeast Asia, he added.

On bilateral relations, Hu said China is willing to work with the ROK to promote a continuous growth of bilateral ties as the two countries have established an overall cooperative partnership.

He said the year 2007 will be the 15th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries, which will hold China-ROK exchange year activities with the hope of enhancing mutual understanding and cooperation.

He also expressed the hope that the two sides will make concerted efforts to ensure the smooth progress of these activities.

Roh said the ROK is preparing to hold various activities and hopes that these activities will yield important results and help promote bilateral relations.

Hu arrived in Vietnam on Wednesday for a state visit as guest of the Vietnamese Communist Party leader Nong Duc Manh and President Nguyen Minh Triet. Vietnam is the first leg of Hu's four-nation tour, which will also take him to Laos, India and Pakistan.

Source: Xinhua