‘China expects all participants in six-party talks fulfil commitments’

BEIJING—China expected that all concerned parties would continue to fulfil their commitments in earnest and implement the second phase action plan on resolving the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue in an all-round and balanced manner, said Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Jiang Yu on Thursday.
Jiang told a regular press conference that with the joint efforts of all participants in the six-party talks, the second phase action plan was under implementation. Some areas witnessed faster pace, while others were in slower pace. Jiang said this was normal. The spokeswoman said the all-round implementation of the second phase action plan would open a broader prospect for the six-party talks. According to a six-party talks joint document released in Beijing on Oct. 3, 2007, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) agreed to disable all its existing nuclear facilities and provide a complete and correct declaration of all its nuclear programs by the end of 2007.
The six-party talks, initiated in 2003 and aimed at resolving the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, involve China, the DPRK, the United States, the Republic of Korea, Russia and Japan. China hoped that all participants in the six-party talks would implement the second phase action plan on resolving the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula in an all-round and balanced manner, said Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Qin Gang on Thursday.
Qin made the remarks at a regular press conference on Thursday afternoon when asked to comment on the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea)’s declaration of its nuclear programs and the possible recipient country of DPRK’s nuclear materials. Qin said the nuclear facilities at Yongbyon in the DPRK have been shut down and were being decommissioned, adding that most decommissioning work would be completed by the end of this year. Qin said that under a joint document adopted by the six parties to the multilateral talks, the United States would take the lead in the decommissioning work under the principles of being acceptable to all parties, scientific, safe, verifiable, and consistent with international standards. When asked whether the Chinese and Japanese leaders would discuss the six-party talks process, Qin said he believed that the leaders of China and Japan — which are parties to the process — would exchange views on the talks and on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue.
Qin said that China and Japan have maintained close communication and cooperation in the six-party talks process and he hoped such cooperation could be maintained and strengthened. Qin noted that the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the normalization of ties between relevant nations, and the peace and stability of the peninsula and those of the northeast Asia at large are the agreed consensus of and in the common interest of all the six parties.—Xinhua