North Korea proposes resuming six-party talks

North Korean Vice Marshal Choe Ryong Hae said during a visit to China that Pyongyang is ready to return to the six-party talks on denuclearization on the Korean peninsula, Chinese media reported on May 24.

North Korea is “willing to accept China’s advice and hold talks with relevant parties,” Xinhua said. The six-party talks involve North Korea, South Korea, China, Russia, Japan and the United States.

Mr. Choe Ryong Hae (left) and Mr. Liu Yunshan - Photo: AP

The Japanese government welcomed the latest statement from the DPRK. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said that North Korea's cessation of actions that could escalate tensions in the region and its showing signs of acceptance of dialogue was a positive development. He also affirmed that Tokyo would "always keep the door open for dialogue" with Pyongyang, but stressed that the country must first take concrete actions toward denuclearization.

The US and South Korea said it was too early to judge whether Mr Choe's comments during his visit to Beijing were a significant step toward resuming talks. The six-party talks have been stalled since 2008.

South Korean Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Hyung Suk said on May 24 that it was too early to draw any conclusions about the remarks, while Foreign Ministry spokesman Cho Tai Young declined to comment. US State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said the Obama administration did not have enough information about the meeting to evaluate the comments. “We want to maintain the six-party talks process and focus on denuclearization as a core objective,” Ventrell said.

Mr. Choe is the highest-ranking North Korean official to visit China since leader Kim Jong Un succeeded his late father, Mr. Kim Jong Il, in 2011. On May 24, Mr. Choe met with Mr. Fan Changlong, vice chairman of China's Central Military Commission.

During a meeting with Choe on May 23, Liu Yunshan, standing member of the secretariat of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, told Choe that China hopes all relevant countries stick to the goal of denuclearization and resume the six-party talks as soon as possible, according to a statement from China's Foreign Ministry.

According to Tuoi Tre - DT