S. Korea: DPRK holds key to reopening six-party talks
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The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is "holding a key" to reopening six-party talks aimed at ending its nuclear program, a South Korean official said Monday.
"North Korea (DPRK) is holding a key. Let me reiterate it is important that the North shows its genuine will for peace and cooperation on the Korean peninsula and also its denuclearization, " foreign ministry spokesman Kim Young-sun told a press briefing.
Countries involved in the six-party talks agree that the forum is the only way for dismantling the DPRK's nuclear program, Kim said in response to recent skepticism about the long-stalled talks as a viable means to achieve its goal.
"No party is questioning the viability of the six-party talks," Kim added.
His remarks came as Stephen Bosworth, the U.S. envoy on the DPRK, is scheduled to visit South Korea, China and Japan on January 3-7 to discuss reviving the six-party talks that the DPRK had boycotted.
Bosworth's upcoming trip will help fine-tune opinions of the countries concerned, the spokesman said. "I expect the outcome of his Asian tour to lay the foundations of discussions when Chinese President Hu Jintao visits the United States," he added.
The flurry of diplomatic activities come after Pyongyang, which once declared the six-party talks dead, expressed its will to return to the negotiating table while claiming it has developed a new, highly sophisticated uranium enrichment facility.
The last round of talks was hosted by China in December 2008.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said last week that " significant progress" must be made in dismantling its nuclear program in 2011 through the six-party talks.
"We can only resolve the issue of ending North Korea's nuclear program diplomatically through the six-party talks," Lee said.
