The US envoy to talks on North Korea's nuclear program yesterday said he believed there was potential for progress in the next round of negotiations and that China would soon announce a start date.
The comments follow pledges by the key players, Washington and Pyongyang, to strive for progress in the slow-moving negotiations.
The Chinese-organized international talks took on added urgency after North Korea alarmed its neighbors in October by exploding a nuclear bomb. But the latest round ended last month in Beijing with no breakthroughs.
US Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill told reporters that Washington was disappointed with the lack of progress in last month's round but that he believed there was "a basis for making progress" when negotiators meet again, without giving details.
Meanwhile, South Korean media reported that North Korea has agreed to discuss the disarmament of its nuclear weapons when talks resume, which would mark a shift in the North's stance.
North Korea agreed to directly address moves to disarm when Hill and the North's chief nuclear envoy, Kim Kye-gwan, met in Berlin last week, the Yonhap news agency reported, citing unidentified diplomatic sources.
Previously, Pyongyang said it would not discuss nuclear disarmament unless the US first lifted financial restrictions imposed for the North's alleged counterfeiting and money laundering.
Separate talks between Washington and Pyongyang on the financial sanctions issue were also expected to resume soon, but no date or location had been fixed yet, Hill said.
"I think they will be very soon, probably the same time or before the six-party talks," he said.
Hill said that in talks on Sunday with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei (武大偉), the two sides agreed the talks should start again "as soon as possible."
"We hope that the Chinese government will be able to announce soon the start up of the talks," he said.
China, the host of the negotiations, is expected to arrange a date for the talks with the parties involved, including North Korea, Japan, South Korea and Russia, Hill said.
North Korea's Kim arrived in Beijing yesterday for talks with the Chinese side, Xinhua news agency reported, without giving specifics.
South Korea's nuclear envoy, Chun Yung-woo, was also expected to arrive in Beijing for talks, a South Korean Foreign Ministry official said on customary condition of anonymity, citing policy.
Hill was due to return to Washington yesterday after a tour to brief Japan, South Korea and China about his meeting in Berlin with Kim. The two sides agreed then to restart talks as soon as possible and strive for concrete progress.
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